Naruto: Overlord of The Ashes
by Raja-Ulat
Summary: This is the story of a boy whose will of fire had been extinguished. A story of how the boy would become the child of a self-fulfilling prophesy. A story of how the boy would become a demon, not of nine tails but of nine faces. A demon that will herald the end of the Ninja Age by becoming its executioner...
1. Chapter 0

**Naruto: Overlord of The Ashes**

Disclaimer: This will be a Naruto fanfiction with elements borrowed from Overlord, Diablo, Warhammer and maybe even Dragon Age and Dragon Quest. This story will try to follow canon settings but I cannot guarantee it. A word of warning, Naruto will be darker than canon and be Konohagakure's antagonist (and I sincerely pray will not be a Jerk-stu)!

**Chapter 0: The Endless War and The Withered Leaf**

Before the Age of Ninjas, there was the Endless War.

No one exactly knows how the Endless War all started. Some claim that the world was already at war, a twisted prelude to the true Endless War as some would put it, while others say that it was a period of peace and prosperity before the Endless War ruined that peace. Regardless, it is known that the end of Endless War involved the Juubi, the Ten-Tailed Demon which possessed a power so vast and foul that its very presence can cause despair and destruction. In fact, the Juubi would have destroyed the world had it not been vanquished by a man known as the Sage of The Six Paths, the Saviour of The World who would later be known as the God of Shinobi. By wielding chakra, the fusion of both physical and spiritual energies, the Sage of The Six Paths was able to defeat the Juubi by sealing it away, thus ending the Endless War as well as creating the Age of Ninjas as all modern forms of ninjutsu relied on chakra to work.

However, not even those who know about the Sage of The Six Paths, including his great feats, his legendary treasures and the conflict between his two sons due to the jealousy of the elder son, knew what exactly entailed during the Endless War itself. Of course, it did not require a genius to know that in times of war there would be tools and weapons, including weapons of mass destruction which even the Juubi itself might have actually been. Therefore, is it any surprise that there could be hidden relics of that terrible period, relics which had not been seen again even before the beginning of the Age of Ninjas, relics that might somehow be still… alive…?

Scene Change

Uzumaki Naruto, a sun-blond boy with tan skin, cerulean-blue eyes and three pairs of whisker marks on each cheek, was running for his dear life. Having been recently banished from his own home village, Konohagakure, the boy's day only got worse as ninjas who wore plain white masks started to hunt him down like he was an animal.

With tears welling in his eyes, the boy asked himself as he continued to run, "Why… what did I ever do to deserve this…?"

Flashback

For as long as he could remember, Uzumaki Naruto had been hated by the majority of the adults in the village while the majority of the children followed their example. The misdeeds that the adults had committed against him included kicking him out into the streets, giving him outrageous prices even for rotten food, assuming that they do not drive him away first, vandalizing his home, kicking him out of class for no reason, glaring at him or insulting him as though he is worse than thrash, and ignoring him as though he does not even exist. Some even went so far as to physically abuse him and a few even tried to kill him although those attempts are thankfully few in number. It was not until after his third failure to be promoted into a genin, a low-ranked ninja, did Naruto finally found out the reason behind their hatred.

On the day he was born, a terrible demon known as the Kyuubi no Youko attacked the village and had killed many people before the village's leader at the time, the Fourth Hokage, sealed the demon into a new born baby which happened to be Naruto. After sealing the demon, a deed which had cost him his life, the Fourth Hokage made a dying wish for Naruto to be seen as a hero rather than the demon he had contained within him. The Third Hokage, predecessor of the Fourth Hokage who ironically took back his position after the tragic death of his successor, informed the Fourth Hokage's wish to the people of the village as well as made a rule which forbid the people who saw the attack from ever revealing Naruto's status as the vessel of the Kyuubi to the younger generation. However, rather than respecting that wish, many of the people instead did everything within their power to make Naruto's life as miserable as they could safely get away with.

Fortunately for Naruto, not everyone in the village hated the boy. The Third Hokage treated Naruto like a grandson who sadly was not able to do more for the boy due to both his busy schedule as a leader of Konohagakure as well as political limitations. There were also Teuchi and his daughter, Ayame, the people who own Ichiraku Ramen who, in Naruto's opinion, make the best ramen in the world. Naruto's favourite teacher, a chuunin instructor known as Umino Iruka, was another adult who cared for the boy. In fact, Iruka had actually taken a blow meant to kill Naruto and later gave Naruto his own headband, thereby acknowledging him as both a person and a ninja, after Naruto rescued him in return from the traitor that had tried to kill the boy during a "makeup exam" after his third failure to pass as a genin.

As for people from his own age group who graduated alongside with him, Naruto could consider himself as a friend or at least a friendly acquaintance with Inuzuka Kiba, Nara Shikamaru and Akamichi Chouji. That said, Kiba did consider Naruto as a rival and can be bit of an arrogant boor at times but no one would ever doubt Kiba's loyalty to his friends, especially towards his ninja-dog, Akamaru. Then there was Aburame Shino, a quiet boy whom Naruto never really got to know before their graduation. As far as girls go, he knew Yamanaka Ino, but was never close to her, and Hyuuga Hinata, a strange girl who always stutters and seems ready to faint whenever he sees her but is otherwise a nice person as he later found out after his graduation. Upon graduating, they were assigned to their own teams with Kiba, Shino and Hinata led by Yuuhi Kurenai while Shikamaru, Chouji and Ino were led by Sarutobi Asuma, the son of the Third Hokage, Sarutobi Hiruzen.

Finally there is his own team, a team that Naruto had once hoped to be the closest thing he has to a family. His teammates included Haruno Sakura, a girl whom Naruto had a crush on for as long as he could remember, and Uchiha Sasuke, Naruto's rival and a prodigy unlike Naruto who was the dead last of his class. Then there was his jounin instructor, Hatake Kakashi, a perpetually tardy man with a love for Icha Icha books who place special emphasis on the importance of teamwork. Alas, Naruto's hope did not come true as the team eventually broke apart which later led to Naruto's banishment…

Flashback End

Forcing down the memories of the terrible events which led to his banishment, Naruto continued running as he barely avoided thrown kunai, shuriken and senbon. Making a handseal, Naruto summoned over a hundred shadow clones, unique clones which do not require an elemental substance such as earth or water clones and yet can interact with their physical environment unlike a normal illusionary clone. Hoping to lose his pursuers, Naruto and his clones scattered in all directions, some even turning around to face their attackers and charge head-on.

Realizing what Naruto had done, the pursuing masked ninjas knew that they would not be able to catch him easily as his clones would delay and misdirect them while the real Naruto continues with his escape. Forced to hunt down every shadow clone they encounter to find the real one, they would be unable to find him anytime soon especially if he decides to create even more clones to further increase his chances of escaping. As such, one of them quickly retreated to report the situation and request for reinforcements while the others continued with their hunt…

Scene Change

After creating his shadow clones, Naruto continued to run and kept creating more clones along the way to further confuse his pursuers. The boy did not stop running until he reached a mountainside and found a cave to shelter in for the night. Not daring to risk detection, the boy staggered deeper into the cave, his chakra almost completely depleted due to running for almost an entire day and night without stopping. Naruto did not even dare to light a fire to light his way into the cave as its light and smoke will reveal his location.

As he stumbled blindly into the cave, Naruto unwillingly recalled the circumstances which eventually led to his banishment and later his current dilemma…

Flashback

It all started during the chuunin exams when Naruto's team, Team Seven, attended the exam in the hopes of becoming chuunin, middle-ranked ninjas. Of course, there would be other genin teams, teams composed of low-ranked ninjas, including teams from other villagers. While fights and even deaths are not uncommon in the chuunin exams, facing legendary ninjas during the second phase of the exam is certainly not part of the exam's standard procedure as Team Seven fought against a traitor of Konohagakure known as Orochimaru. Biting Sasuke's shoulder, Orochimaru placed some sort of seal which caused Sasuke to grow stronger but also made him incredibly aggressive. While it is debatable how much the seal had affected Sasuke's thinking, it did not change the fact that Sasuke ultimately chose to join Orochimaru in pursuit of power in order to have his revenge against his elder brother who was responsible for massacring the rest of his clan, Uchiha Itachi. Desperate to stop his former teammate from joining the same traitor who was responsible for killing their Third Hokage, Sarutobi Hiruzen, Naruto set off with a team lead led by his former classmate, Shikamaru, to capture him…

Scene Change

In a location known as the Valley of The End, Naruto was holding onto the gash on his chest as he looked down upon his former teammate. During their struggle, Sasuke, a boy with dark hair and eyes, used the cursed seal that Orochimaru gave him to change into a grey-skinned winged humanoid while Naruto, the vessel of the Kyuubi no Youko, tapped into its demonic power and thus gained a fox-shaped cloak of crimson-red chakra. In another time, Naruto would have held back and lost in his battle against Sasuke. However, in a moment of admittedly twisted brilliance, Naruto used the cloak's ability to extend itself and drove his technique, the rasengan, directly into Sasuke's right knee. As the technique is well-known for its destructive capacity, it ended up completely shattering the bones in Sasuke's entire right leg as well as nearly pulverizing its muscles and sent the Uchiha boy spinning to Naruto's side of the river they were fighting on. Due to the circumstances, Sasuke's aim went off thus causing his own technique, the chidori, to swipe over Naruto's chest instead of driving it into his chest as originally intended.

Due to having his right leg completely broken as well as the agony that came with it, Sasuke was unable to continue fighting as he screamed in pain and impotent rage towards Naruto, "What have you done to me, dobe?"

Looking at Sasuke's eyes, which are currently crimson-red with three black tomoe spinning around the pupil due to the Uchiha clan's unique bloodline ability, the Sharingan, Naruto replied, "Well did say that I would bring you back even if I have to break your arms and legs, didn't I? Bedsides, our mission was to stop you from going to Orochimaru."

"And this is your idea of stopping me? Look at me, my right leg is completely useless because of you!" Getting onto his knees, or rather his left knee, Sasuke continued to yell, "How the hell am I supposed to ever have my revenge on that man for killing my entire clan with my right leg as it is? You took away my ambition!"

Still angry at how Sasuke would willingly join forces with the same man that led the recent invasion into Konohagakure which killed Hiruzen, Naruto shouted back, "Then what was I supposed to do, teme? Let you go and have that snake-bastard take over your body? He only wants your eyes and you know it!"

"What right do you have to stop me? I chose to join him because he can give me what I wanted… no, needed most!" yelled Sasuke.

"What about your other ambition, to rebuild your clan? What about the village that you left behind, your teammates? Don't tell me any of those things, those bonds, don't matter to you!"

Glaring at Naruto with all the hate he could muster, Sasuke growled, "You're right, they don't, not if they hold me back from my true objectives." Stunned, Naruto was silent as Sasuke continued, "A nameless orphan idiot like you… will never understand what it feels like to lose everything you cared for, to be betrayed by those you trusted most!"

Ironically enough, Sasuke's hateful words foreshadowed the tragic reality that can never be undone…

Scene Change

"Uzumaki Naruto, on behalf of the village and the Hokage who is unable to attend this emergency council meeting due to immediate medical emergencies involving the rest of your team and the last Uchiha, you are hereby sentenced to banishment!"

Scene Change

Glaring hatefully at Naruto, his pink-haired female teammate, Sakura, shouted at him, "How could you do this to Sasuke-kun, you… you monster!"

Scene Change

It was after that painful encounter with Sakura, right after receiving that horrible sentence, when Naruto decided to just run away rather than stay any longer in the village in the hopes of at least saying goodbye to the people that he hoped at least cared for him. Then again, it would not have made much of a difference as he had to leave immediately or he would be punished severely should he still be within the walls of Konohagakure by sundown…

Flashback End

Tenderly stroking the aching bruise on his right cheek, courtesy of his last encounter with Sakura, tears flowed freely from Naruto's eyes as he wondered, "Why… why is it that everything I do never seem right to you… or to anyone in the village?"

Too exhausted from both fatigue and grief, Naruto fell down and assumed a foetal position as he continued to weep. In fact, he was so exhausted that he never noticed the ground beneath him giving away, or even crying out in surprise as he fell into the abyss below…

Scene Change

Within the first week after Naruto's banishment, Senju Tsunade, the fifth Hokage of Konohagakure and one of the few people that cared for the boy, almost went on a mad rampage when she realized that the council had gone behind her back and banished Naruto against her wishes or that of the ninja clans. Quickly sending out all the ninjas she could afford to dispatch to find Naruto, her hopes were dashed when she realized that Naruto could not be found no matter where they searched within the Land of Fire, not even with the aid of the endangered Bokouchuu, a type of beetle which remembers the first scent it smells and would be instinctively drawn to it no matter how faint it is. The fact that she cannot undo the banishment order due to council's political manipulation only made her hate them even more for banishing the closest thing she had to a younger brother ever since the Third Ninja World War.

So strong was her resentment that she staunchly refused to treat their "precious" Uchiha Sasuke's admittedly horrific injury unless they undo Naruto's banishment, thus forcing the council to rely on less skilful doctors to treat his mutilated right leg. Granted, the council did try to threaten Tsunade into treating Sasuke's injury by having the recently-exiled Naruto be labelled as a missing-nin, which basically means a rogue or traitor ninja, but Tsunade threatened them that if they do so, she will label Sasuke as a traitor that indirectly almost caused the deaths of heirs from at least two major ninja clans and demand for his immediate execution regardless of how the cursed seal he had received from Orochimaru may had affected his thinking. Combined with Kakashi's testimony that Sasuke really cared for nothing else other than power and his revenge, the council could not even stop Tsunade from having a seal placed on Sasuke to ensure that leaving the village or using the cursed seal will hurt him horribly before finally killing him. Ever since that incident, the council realized that Tsunade is far more willing to be "tyrannically oppressive" in defending Naruto than Hiruzen was and that the only reason why they even succeeded in banishing Naruto in the first place was because she had more immediate priorities at the time, namely saving Chouji and Neji from dying.

As for the remaining members of Team Seven, Sakura continued hating Naruto for what he had done to Sasuke and was frankly glad that he was gone. However, she soon found out that her opinion about the "useless monster" was not shared by everyone the hard way when Tsunade almost strangled her to death with one hand and called her a worthless traitor-loving scum. Her former jounin instructor, Kakashi, on the other hand quickly disbanded Team Seven after making it clear that Naruto was what even held the team together in the first place. Speaking about Kakashi, the silver-haired man with his left eye hidden beneath his forehead protector was among the first to desperately search for Naruto but failed to find him despite using all the ninja-dogs he could summon to help. Ashamed of his own mistakes, the man quit being a jounin instructor and could no longer bring himself to look at the memorial stone which bore the names of his lost loved ones as he was sure that they were just as ashamed of him if not more so. Already many of his colleagues are disappointed or ashamed of him.

Shikamaru, formerly one of Naruto's classmates and the chuunin leader of the team that retrieved Sasuke, was ashamed that he had almost gotten three of his teammates killed and caused Naruto's banishment. Had it not been for his father's wisdom, his mother's almost-uncharacteristic show of motherly kindness, his best friend's encouragement and the moral support of a certain blond ninja from Sunagakure, the lazy-looking boy with narrow eyes and a spiky ponytail on top of his head would have resigned from his position as a chuunin. Speaking about Shikamaru's best friend, Chouji, the overweight boy with brown hair and swirls on his cheeks felt bad about Naruto's banishment as well and vowed to become stronger so that he and Shikamaru can find Naruto someday and apologize for not being strong or smart enough to prevent his unjustified banishment. Unfortunately for their team, Ino, a pale-blond girl with blue eyes, was resentful towards Naruto for crippling Sasuke and her friendship with the two boys suffered greatly as a result. Asuma, who knew quite a bit about the boy from his father, Sarutobi Hiruzen, was deeply ashamed with his own village, the same village his father died protecting, for banishing the boy.

Kiba, upon realizing what had happened to Naruto, was tempted to immediately charge into the council chamber to call "those stupid retards" out for banishing his friend and rival who had done nothing wrong as Sasuke was the real traitor to both the village and Team Seven, not Naruto. The only reason why he didn't was because his mother, Inuzuka Tsume, already made that same statement. Shino, who was unavailable for that mission at the time, agreed with Kiba and regretted that he had been unable to help with the mission. As such, much like Shikamaru and Chouji, both boys swore to become stronger. Their third teammate, Hinata, was heartbroken by the banishment and would have fallen into suicidal depression had her teammates, her jounin instructor and even her elder cousin not encouraged her to become stronger so that she can one day find the boy whom she had always admired. Determined to find Naruto and finally tell him her feelings, she dedicated herself to her training in ways that even Neji's eccentric teammate, Rock Lee, and jounin instructor, Might Guy, found impressive. Kurenai, who knew about Hinata's crush towards Naruto, not that no one with a working pair of eyes other than Naruto did not know, was willing to help her genin become stronger and better as trackers so that they can find Naruto, wherever the boy may be.

Speaking of Neji's team, the Hyuuga boy was also determined to find Naruto to thank him for making see that a person's fate can indeed be changed for the better. Lee, whose continued ninja career had been saved thanks to Naruto who brought back Tsunade, the legendary medic-ninja, was equally determined to find Naruto to thank him for "rescuing his flames of youth". Tenten, while not directly involved with Naruto like her other teammates, was nevertheless willing to help them as Naruto was responsible for helping them, even if Neji did not want it at the time. Guy, who was grateful to Naruto for helping Neji let go of his obsession with fate and for helping Lee recover from an otherwise crippling injury which would have ended his ninja career, was all too happy to train anyone who wanted to help Naruto in any way they can despite the circumstances.

As for Jiraiya, the white-haired toad sage of Konohagakure, the middle-aged man quickly tried to locate Naruto by using the Toad Summoning contract that the boy shared with him but realized to his horror that the boy, while alive, somehow broke his contract with the toads. Unable to find out how or why exactly the boy did so, Jiraiya knew that he had failed his disciple but was determined to find him.

It was also during that period when the people that Naruto had helped over his tragically short career as a genin of Konohagakure came to know about his banishment and many were less than pleased by it to say the least. The Land of Waves, a land which suffered under the tyranny of Gatou Cooperation until Team Seven helped Tazuna complete of the Great Naruto Bridge, would have cut ties with Konohagakure for banishing their hero had it not been for Tazuna lying about the ranking of the mission as well as the need for trade to both pay off the resulting debt and to recover their economy. The hidden ninja village of Takigakure, another village which Team Seven had helped, was shocked that the village that aided them during Suien's attack on the village to obtain its fabled Hero Water would actually banish a loyal ninja of the village just because he crippled a traitor. Shibuki, the current leader of the village, quickly tried to find out why someone as inspiringly brave as Naruto was unfairly punished. The Land of Tea, especially the Wasabi family and their champion runner, Morino Idate, were also shocked that Naruto was unfairly banished. Angered by the banishment, Idate would have hated ninjas like the time before he met Team Seven had it not been for the fact that his friend, Naruto, was a ninja himself albeit a rather unorthodox one. The Land of Spring, which was once known as the Land of Snow, would have cut ties with Konohagakure as well but Kazahana Koyuki, the land's daimyo, knew that she could not do so without sufficient proof that her people are better off without the village as their ally. Sunagakure too could not cut ties with Konohagakure as they needed the alliance due to their currently weakened state. The fact that Sunagakure was guilty of betraying Konohagakure during the chuunin exams which resulted in the death of the Third Hokage certainly did not give them any moral high ground regardless.

Scene Change

A month had passed ever since Naruto's banishment when a book was published, starting from the Lands of Wave, Spring, Tea and Wind, a book titled "The Unmasking of Konohagakure, as written by the Broken Ashes".

To describe the book's story in brief, it was basically a story of Naruto's difficult childhood followed by his time in the academy, his short career as a genin of Konohagakure and finally his banishment. Although the book did not state what happened to Naruto after his banishment, it did clearly imply that the boy's life-story did not end there and that he was able to somehow move on with his life, finding a new purpose which would be revealed in its "sequel". While those that cared for Naruto were glad that he is likely to be alive, many were hurt, horrified, angered and disgusted by what he had to go through because of his status as the jinchuuriki of the Kyuubi no Youko as well as the less than stellar relationship he had with his teammates and his teachers, including Kakashi and Jiraiya.

Despised by almost all of the adults in Konohagakure, the book was pretty much banned from the village thus denying anyone from reading it within the week of its discovery. Of course, Tsunade staunchly refused their demands to punish anyone found reading the book severely and only "confiscated" their books at worst. However, for reasons and through methods unknown even to the current Hokage, the books were somehow smuggled into every home in the village despite the ban in place. Those that hated Naruto immediately destroyed them but those that cared for the blond boy or at least respected his courage and sympathized with his tragedy treasured the books. While it was not surprising that those that cared or sympathized with Naruto treasured the books, including Kakashi who actually favoured reading his copy over his once-beloved Icha Icha books, not that anyone knew until weeks later as he disguised it as an Icha Icha book, the book had more fans within the village than expected, especially among the younger generation.

One of the fans was Kurama Yakumo, a girl with brown hair and eyes, who found a smuggled copy of the book in her room one day. As a member of the Kurama clan, a clan renowned for their ability to create genjutsu so powerful that it can actually physically harm their victims, Yakumo was unfortunately born with a weak body and thus unable to become a ninja. Although tutored by Kurenai, Konohagakure's foremost expert in the field of genjutsu, Yakumo still did not manage to become a ninja as Kurenai felt that she was unfit to be one and was eventually forced to seal away her powers by the order of the Third Hokage. Due to a tragic misunderstanding which involved the deaths of her parents after the sealing of her powers, Yakumo believed that the Third Hokage decided to have her executed should her powers become uncontrollable and thus developed a deep resentment towards the village. Reading the book only made her resentment towards her own home village grow but also made her realize that becoming obsessed with revenge like Uchiha Sasuke would make her no better than the very people she grew to hate. And so, rather than attack Konohagakure as she originally intended, she decided to simply leave the village and find her destiny elsewhere. However, her change of heart provoked her Ido, a malicious entity created from her Id, to attempt an aggressive takeover of her body so that she will carry out her original plan. After realizing the truth, that her Ido side was the one responsible for killing her parents, Yakumo eventually succeeded in overcoming it with the help of Kurenai, as well as her genin team, who finally admitted that she did care for her. Despite these events, Yakumo still wanted to find her destiny elsewhere and eventually succeeded in leaving the village thanks to her advanced genjutsu skills. As she was never a ninja despite her abilities, Yakumo was not labelled as a missing-nin but that did not stop Konohagakure, especially her clansmen, from desperately trying to find her.

Like everyone else in Konohagakure, Sakura and Ino received their copies of the book. However, rather than immediately destroy them as some had expected, they actually read the books first. Ino, after reading the book and receiving confirmation from her father, Inoichi, became deeply remorseful and had to work hard to finally regain the trust of those that cared for Naruto and took her resentment towards him unfavourably. As for Sakura, she actually believed that Naruto was lying through his books and destroyed it soon after reading it. However, while many believed that she did it out of continued spite towards Naruto, Ino felt that Sakura was really doing it out of a desperate desire to deny her guilt which would have led to extreme self-loathing had she allowed it to consume her. Regardless, Sakura was pretty much despised by everyone that cared for Naruto with the exception of Ino.

Scene Change

Ever since the book was published, alliances between Konohagakure with the Lands of Waves, Spring and even Tea were further strained. To mock "scum worse than trash", they openly promoted the books despite most of Konohagakure protesting against it. However, with the support of the people that cared for Naruto including Tsunade and Jiraiya, they were able to promote the books and even made it into a new bestseller comparable to Jiraiya's Icha Icha series. Ironically enough, Konohagakure's chief rivals, Kumogakure and Iwagakure, were the biggest buyers of the book. To them, the comical pranks that Naruto had played even against the likes of the Hyuuga clan, Konohagakure's ANBU and the Third Hokage were gold-rated comedy. The book was also famous in Kirigakure as the story featured the final moments of Momochi Zabuza, one of the Seven Swordsmen of the Mist who became a missing-nin for attempting a coup against the ruling Mizukage at the time, Yagura.

After finding out about Naruto's difficult life from the book, the people of Sunagakure made it clear to the people of Konohagakure that many of them are ultimately no better than them for two reasons. The first reason is that most of the people of Konohagakure had hated Naruto, a boy who did not even tap into his demonic powers until after his third failure to graduate unlike Gaara, jinchuuriki of Shukaku, the Ichibi no Tanuki, who was able to use his powers to hurt and kill people even before he attended the academy at Sunagakure. The second reason is that the people of Konohagakure had, just like the previous Kazekage that betrayed Konohagakure and Gaara, his own son, betrayed a loyal ninja who played a key role in stopping Shukaku's rampage during the invasion as well as preventing Sasuke from defecting to Orochimaru, the one responsible for both killing the treacherous Kazekage and the Third Hokage. That is not even counting the fact that they have all but ignored the dying wishes of the Fourth Hokage, a man whom the entire village supposedly worship as a hero.

Unknown to Team Seven during their mission at Takigakure, the hidden village actually had a jinchuuriki of their own who contained the Nanabi no Kabutomushi, Fuu, whom they had also horribly mistreated to the point that she had to live outside the village in semi-exile. Realizing the error of their ways after reading the book, a few of the more sympathetic members of the village, including Shibuki, wanted to make amends. However, by the time they decided to act upon it, Fuu had already left as she was somehow able to read the book and made a decision that she would be better off proving herself to people that actually cared for her even if they are not members of Takigakure. Unable to bring himself to brand her as a missing-nin, due to somehow finding out that Naruto was hunted like one not long after his banishment, Shibuki instead placed her as a wandering-nin, much like Tsunade herself had been before she finally became the Fifth Hokage.

Despite suffering from a great rise in infamy, which also affected the Land of Fire thus earning the ire of the Fire Daimyo, Konohagakure was still able to somehow get by through the following months after Naruto's banishment. In fact, the ninjas that cared for Naruto became quite popular selections for clients outside the Land of Fire such as Princess Haruna from the Land of Vegetables. Once a cold-hearted young woman, reading the book made her realize that there are others who had suffered much worse than her and, after realizing how much Naruto had suffered because of his unfair banishment, did not want to become anything like the council of Konohagakure or Uchiha Sasuke, namely by becoming as cruel and uncaring as them. Being together with Hinata, Chouji and Shikamaru only cemented her change into a kind but firm daimyo of the Land of Vegetables.

Haruna was not the only daimyo influenced by the books as Toki, a woman who was once obsessed with vengeance over the deaths of her father and brother, eventually gave up on revenge after realizing the cost it would have on her very heart and soul. That said, Toki still wanted justice and eventually gained it with the help of Team Guy and later became the daimyo of the Land of Birds. It should be noted that Toki's rise as Daimyo of the Land of Birds occurred before Haruna's own ascension.

Besides the Lands of Vegetables and Birds, the few ninjas that cared for Naruto also gained employment from other places including the Land of Sea and Hoshigakure.

Unknown to the ninjas of Konohagakure, the Land of Sea had one person who had suffered unfair persecution just like Naruto, Isaribi. An unfortunate victim of a cruel experiment to create the ultimate aquatic assassin, Isaribi was mutated to become a fish-like humanoid creature which the local people would later fearfully dub as the Kaima. Although able to change form, the scales of her Kaima form could not completely disappear and so she was forced to wear bandages to hide them. Somehow able to get access to the book, Isaribi was convinced that she will never be accepted by the local people even if Amachi, the man that made her into an experimental Kaima in the first place, somehow cured her and thus decided to abandon him to find a place which will accept her regardless of her physical appearance and, more importantly, her misguided misdeeds in her desperate hope for a cure which he ultimately falsely offered. Without his precious test subject to create the ultimate aquatic assassin, Amachi was forced to kidnap more people which drew the attention of Hinata, Shino, Kiba, Anko and Kurenai. Working together, they were able to put an end to Amachi's cruel endeavours. As for the people that mistreated Isaribi, it is a tragic fact that many of them never thought about their own actions against her despite being fans of the book.

As for Hoshigakure, Team Guy was able to stop Akahoshi from gaining control of the village and corrupting people through the corrupting powers of a chakra-enhancing star. Despite losing their star which made their village unique, the people of Hoshigakure were determined to become a strong ninja village even without it, just as Naruto was determined to become Konohagakure's Hokage despite the odds stacked against him. When asked why the people of Hoshigakure found inspiration when it was clear that Naruto ultimately failed to achieve his dream, unless council of Konohagakure somehow ends the banishment which will obviously not happen anytime soon if ever, the reply Team Guy received was, "True, but the fact that he could still keep going despite of it all is nothing short of inspirational." Needless to say, Guy and Lee outright wept in joy of Hoshigakure's "youthfulness".

The ninjas of Konohagakure aside, Ayame and Teuchi decided to leave the village altogether after the second month of Naruto's banishment and settle down in the Land of Waves, the first place where Naruto was finally accepted as the hero he really is. Unable to deny them, especially considering that their business had taken for the worse ever since they lost their best customer, Tsunade allowed them to leave. Soon after settling down in the Land of Waves with Tazuna's blessings, their humble ramen stand would quickly become a renowned restaurant that even the new Mizukage, Terumi Mei, is all too happy to drop by for a bowl of ramen, especially their unique "diet ramen". However, despite becoming a renowned restaurant, Teuchi and Ayame never forgot about Naruto and so kept a humble outdoor stand which a seat especially booked for their beloved blond customer.

Scene Change

A year had passed ever since Naruto's banishment when the ninjas of the elemental nations first realized that something worryingly strange was going on. Granted, they were already aware about Orochimaru being the leader or Otogakure and of Akatsuki, an organization comprised of S-ranked missing-ninjas that seem to be seeking out the powers of the nine Tailed-Beasts, including the Kyuubi no Youko. While anyone would be worried about individuals like Orochimaru and the members of Akatsuki making their move, it was later realized that many of the strange incidents either have nothing to do with them or are actually done against them.

One example of such an incident, which occurred a few months after the "Unmasking of Konohagakure" was published, is the mysterious disappearance of the Fuma clan from the Land of Rice Fields. It was later discovered that the clan is controlled by Orochimaru and that someone actually freed them. As to what happened to them after that, not even Jiraiya's spy network could find out.

Another example is the mysterious disappearance of a chamber known as the Chamber of Sealing, a chamber which contained the Stone of Gelel. A powerful substance, the blue-coloured stone could be used to power and entire army capable of destroying an entire continent. Needless to say, the people that sought for the stone for its power would be less than happy to realize the chamber's disappearance which looked as though a small army had dug around it and somehow snuck away with it.

The third incident would be the disappearance of the sealed body of a certain demon known as the Mouryou. A powerful demon believed to be a rival or an ally to the Juubi, Mouryou's body was separated from its spirit which is sealed in the Land of Demons. Without its body, the demon's spirit cannot revive itself and not even its devout Yomi followers could find it. This of course led to a massive panic for the Yomi clan as they desperately sought for the missing body of Mouryou but to no avail. It would only be later when a certain priestess named Shion realizes who took it and why.

As stated before, some of the incidents that occurred were done against Orochimaru and Akatsuki which included attacks on Orochimaru's many hidden lairs and attacks on Amegakure ninjas which are actually affiliated with Akatsuki. What was worrisomely strange however are the stories the few survivors spoke of as they told stories of dragon-like beasts which have scales hard enough to repel not only normal ninja weapons but even lower-tier ninjutsu attacks. There were also incidents involving both Mount Koryuu, a mountain with the mysterious effect of negating a ninja's chakra abilities, and the Land of Sky, a land which possesses the means to become mobile through flight, although these incidents were not discovered until much later.

Although no one knows who caused these incidents or why, it is generally agreed that whoever did it must have an ulterior motive not unlike that of Orochimaru and Akatsuki. As time passed, the attacks against Orochimaru and Akatsuki only grew and many were convinced that they are better off letting the mysterious antagonist deal with the two known threats, not that they did not bother to at least try and find out who exactly is responsible for them…

Scene Change

Over two years had passed since Naruto's banishment.

With Konohagakure's rise in infamy, Sunagakure somehow became more prosperous than expected especially after considering their failed attempt to betray and destroy Konohagakure. As for Wave, the people had finally settled their debt to Konohagakure and quickly proceeded to make trade agreements with other nations that were more sympathetic to Naruto so that they can minimize trading ties with the village. After making trade agreements with the Lands of Wind, Tea, Vegetables, Birds and Spring, the Land of Wave was no longer reliant to Konohagakure. It could be said that the increased trade with the Land of Wave and its allies was what allowed Sunagakure to prosper more than expected. Despite its infamy and loss of trade, Konohagakure still managed to get by for the past two years and was able to recover somewhat from the failed invasion led by Orochimaru during the chuunin exams. Having Sunagakure supply the necessary trade as an apology for being involved with the invasion certainly helped the village to recover.

Despite having his leg healed by the second year after Naruto's banishment, courtesy of Sakura who feverishly trained as a medic-nin to help heal him despite being hated by Tsunade, the Uchiha boy did nothing to thank her and instead brushed her aside as nothing more than a necessary annoyance to achieve his ambitions. Ironically enough, Sasuke's cold dismissal of her ultimately invaluable aid as well as his inability to tolerate any delays in his recovery finally made Sakura snap as she punched him for the first time in her life, with a chakra-enhanced fist she had been meaning to use on Naruto whom she was sure was lying about his tragedy and is the reason behind her past two years of suffering. Finally losing interest in the boy who had done nothing but ignore her or mistreat her after spending two years by his side to heal his leg, a feat made more impressive by the fact that Tsunade refused to train her, Sakura was forced to finally realize that the only person who actually gave her any sincere encouragement, other than Ino prior to Sakura breaking her once-close friendship with her simply because they have a crush on the same boy, was Naruto. Needless to say, realizing that she had effectively wasted her life and broken her friendships with almost everyone worth befriending over the "ungrateful Uchiha bastard" was an unpleasant revelation to put it mildly. Despite finally getting over her infatuation with the Uchiha boy, Sakura's situation only got worse as she was rejected by not only the people that supported Sasuke and took her assault on him unkindly, including her own parents, but also by the people that still could not forgive her for hurting Naruto, especially her former classmates and Tsunade. Had it not been for Ino's support, and surprisingly Kakashi's as well once he was convinced that she truly got over her increasingly deluded infatuation towards Sasuke, Sakura would have taken her own life, a suicidal desire that only grew stronger as her conscience finally accepted the truth that Naruto had indeed suffered horribly and that she had done nothing but hurt him.

As for Uchiha Sasuke, being effectively bedridden for two years only made his resentment towards Naruto grow to the point that he hated him just as much as he hated Itachi. While given a copy of "The Unmasking of Konohagakure" like everyone else, Sasuke felt nothing but indifference towards Naruto's own suffering as he was convinced that the blond boy will never understand his pain or his "need" for revenge. After recovering from the injury Sakura gave him, Sasuke immediately started training again despite knowing that the new seals on his body will forbid him from either leaving the village or using the cursed seal. Not surprisingly, those that supported him or desired his power immediately gave him their services, not that he cared for any of them other than the fact that they would help him achieve his ambitions.

And so begins the next chapter of this terrible and tragic tale…

-Chapter Fin-

Note: Just to let you know, Naruto will have a harem and, to those that hate Hinata for whatever reasons they may have, Hinata will be a part of it. Also, Naruto will be an antagonist to Konohagakure as stated before but the details are for me to reveal in due time. As for the book being published so soon after his banishment, let's just say Naruto has Shadow Clones at his disposal and leave it at that.


	2. Chapter 1

**Naruto: Overlord of The Ashes**

Disclaimer: This will be a Naruto fanfiction with elements borrowed from Overlord, Diablo, Warhammer and maybe even Dragon Age and Dragon Quest. This story will try to follow canon settings but I cannot guarantee it. A word of warning, Naruto will be darker than canon and be Konohagakure's antagonist (and I sincerely pray will not be a Jerk-stu)!

**Chapter 1: Uzumaki Kaijin**

Almost three years had passed ever since Naruto's banishment, ever since the boy all but disappeared from the face of the Ninja World. The desperate search for the boy, while never completely abandoned by those that cared for him, eventually slowed down as many of them went on with their lives. As for those that hated him, they took his continued absence as a blessing and many of them too carried on with their lives, convinced that they had done the world a favour.

It is therefore ironic when they all will soon realize that while moving on with your life is often sound advice, you should always be aware the your past actions will reward you… or punish you…

Scene Change

Gaara, a red-haired young man with racoon-like pale-green eyes, pale skin and bears the kanji for "love" on the left side of his forehead was dealing with paperwork, an unfortunate responsibility that comes with being the Kazekage of Sunagakure. After reading his twentieth document, Gaara mused, "As much as I hate to say this, being unable to sleep has its advantages."

Jinchuuriki of Shukaku, the Ichibi no Tanuki, Gaara is afflicted with the inability to sleep due to the fear that the demon will consume his soul should he do so. As the tailed demon's vessel, Gaara has the ability to wield the sand from both the ever-present gourd made of sand on his back and from the soil around him. An automatic defence, Gaara does not even need to be consciously aware to be protected by his sand from external threats.

For many years, the boy had been an unstable psychopath, a tragic result of experiencing one traumatizing moment too many by the hands of a person he thought he could trust. However, during that fateful day almost three years ago, he met a person much like himself, Uzumaki Naruto. Defeated by the blond jinchuuriki, Gaara eventually overcame his despair-born madness and eventually even became the leader of the very village that once scorned and hated him, a village that now acknowledges his existence as a person worthy of respect.

Thinking about the blond boy, Gaara wore a melancholic smile as he thought, "It truly is unfair, that you are banished and unwanted despite everything that you have done for them and more, while a former monster like me became similar to what you yourself have wanted to be." Knowing full well that the boy he once knew would no doubt smack his head for having such negative thoughts, Gaara was about to continue with the drudgery which he sincerely wished he could just pulverise with his Sand Coffin technique when the door to his office opened. Looking up from his current document, the young man smiled more happily as he saw the tomboyish young woman with green hair and orange eyes standing before him.

Fuu, the jinchuuriki of Choumei, the Kabuto no Nanabi, smiled at Gaara as she asked, "Don't you ever sleep?"

Gaara's smile widened slightly into a small grin which was nothing like the psychotic smirk that he used to wear prior to being reformed by Naruto. It was during the first year after Naruto was exiled when Fuu entered the Land of Wind. Able to recognize her presence, Gaara quickly identified her and, after a conversation involving her past mistreatment and her desire to find her happiness elsewhere, decided to give her asylum in Sunagakure. True, things were tense at first as Fuu was not only a jinchuuriki but also a foreign ninja, but after her first year in Sunagakure, the village decided that she truly means no harm to them. The fact that she is friendly with Gaara, once a reason for concern as due to a possibility of her manipulating him through his feelings, quickly became a reason to keep her around as she could actually make him laugh with her carefree attitude and her appreciation for pranks, a hobby she no doubt gained from reading "The Unmasking of Konohagakure". Even after taking her ninja skills and biiju-related powers into account, it was still impressive how she managed to completely redecorate Temari's room which included bright pink walls, exceedingly frilly bed sheets and what must have been a ton of cute plush toys. Gaara could still remember how Temari, his dark-eyed blond elder sister, completely freaked out from seeing the state of her room.

"With my paperwork, not even if I could actually sleep," replied Gaara who was already familiar with her friendly banter.

Stepping into the room, Fuu soon sat onto an empty spot on Gaara's desk as she spoke, "You know, you could always have someone else to take care of it for a bit while you and I have out wicked way together."

Hearing Fuu's seductive flirting made Gaara blush slightly, which pretty much meant that anyone else would have glowing-red cheeks and maybe even a mild nosebleed. Shaking his head, Gaara firmly said, "Maybe later tonight, after I secure one poor fool for this torment."

Snorting a snicker, Fuu said, "Alright, but be sure to relax this time. I understand that you cannot sleep and that any major changes to your seal is hazardous but, even so, you still need to relax your body and mind a bit."

Nodding, Gaara smiled appreciatively and said, "I know, Fuu-chan."

Standing up off his desk, Fuu deliberately sauntered as she left, only turning around to smile at him once she was at the door to say, "Later, Gaara-kun."

After Fuu left, Gaara decided to call his ANBU to select the poor soul that would bear his burden of paperwork for the night. As his men proceeded to do their duty, and were probably hiding grins beneath their masks, Gaara thought, "Naruto, my brother, for showing me the right path that has given me so much happiness, I truly hope that you somehow have found yours…"

Scene Change

On the following day, and after a satisfying night spent together with Fuu as well as resisting the urge to put some coarse sand into Kankuro's pants for his teasing, Gaara was back in his office when he saw an ANBU messenger appear before him. Noting his worry beneath his seemingly calm state, Gaara asked, "What is it?"

"There is an Akujuu heading straight towards our village."

Gaara's eyes widened at the statement as he understood the potential danger. "Is it scouting out our village for a point of attack?"

Shaking his head in uncertainty, the ANBU said, "Not as far as we know. If anything, its movements indicate that it wants to be seen and is probably delivering something to our village."

Raising a brow, Gaara wondered, "Is it delivering a message, or something more malicious under the guise of a message?" Deciding not to put the village at risk, Gaara told the ANBU to have everyone on alert in case of the worst-case scenario while he intercepts the incoming Akujuu on his own. Despite protests from his siblings and his teacher who later became his advisor, Gaara assured them that his defence will protect him from the Akujuu and whatever it was delivering. Nevertheless, he did not mind them coming along to help him in case anything goes wrong…

Scene Change

Before long, Gaara stood before three others as he crossed his arms over his chest and waited for the Akujuu which is currently heading straight tawards him. Appearing one year after Naruto's tragic banishment, the Akujuu were dragon-like beasts which come in a variety of forms including serpentine, canine and apish body types. What all the Akujuu have in common however is that they have dark scales which have a red, blue, gold or grey shine, horns, tails, digitigrade feet, clawed limbs and orange magma-like lines running along their scaly skin. Like what the rumours had said, they do possess scales which can repel ordinary weapons and even lower-level ninjutsu. However, that does not mean that their scales are indestructible and can be destroyed even with weaker attacks if done repeatedly on softer scales which are usually found at the joints, throat and belly. It is also possible to slip a blade between the scales to harm them. On the other hand, it is still very difficult to kill them and, to make matters even more frustrating for those that wish to study them, they have a tendency to either violently explode or disintegrate into burning ashes once killed or mortally wounded. There is also this unconfirmed rumour that fire-based and lightning-based ninjutsu as well as mind-based genjutsu are completely useless against them.

Seeing the approaching Akujuu, which Gaara identified as an Akujuu-Ouka due to its wolf-like appearance including a face which looks like a wolf's skull, Gaara calmly faced the incoming beast which seemed to show no malice towards him. If it had, Gaara's sands would have attacked it immediately. On that particular note, the Akujuu, while infamously ferocious against ninjas from Amegakure, Otogakure and even Kirigakure, seem to hold no such aggression towards Sunagakure with a few notable exceptions. One example was an incident when a despised member of Sunagakure's ninja forces tried to rape a helpless girl only to end up being brutally torn to pieces by a horde of enraged Akujuu which could climb on walls like a gecko.

As the Akujuu-Ouka drew closer, Gaara subtly prepared to defend himself from any potential attack while the three ninjas behind him, a puppeteer with war-paint on his face known as Kankuro, Temari who is wielding her ever-present enormous war-fan, and Gaara's former jounin-sensei, Baki. As the Akujuu drew closer, everyone noted that it was wearing a collar with what seemed to be an encased scroll attached onto it. Slowing down, the Akujuu eventually stopped and sat down, allowing the scroll to detach from the collar. Gently nudging the collar with its snout, the Akujuu made it clear that the scroll was for them.

Turning his attention towards his siblings, Gaara saw them nod and nodded in return as he allowed his sand to pick up the scroll and open its casing. Kankuro meanwhile sent one of his puppets, a humanoid one known as Karasu, to read the scroll from a safe distance…

Scene Change

Meanwhile, as Kankuro read the scroll on behalf of his younger brother, Gaara, other leaders from various ninja villagers have received the same scrolls as well. Among them was Senju Tsunade whose eyes narrowed as she read its contents, "I, the leader of the creatures which you humans dub as the Akujuu, am sending this message to inform you that I am now the leader of a hidden village of my own. If you're interested to know more about myself, and the possibility of a peaceful coexistence with my village if not more, please activate the seal placed upon the scroll. The seal will respond to anyone so there is no need to do it personally if you fear that it is a trap."

After rereading the scroll, Tsunade told Shizune, "Shizune, bring Sakura in my office right now."

Blinking, Shizune asked, "But why? I thought you still can't forgive her for what she had done to Naruto."

"That's exactly why I'm asking for her. If this is indeed a trap, I can at the very least be sure that no one more valuable to me perishes from it."

Almost unnerved by Tsunade's bitter and cold response, Shizune sighed and said, "Very well, I will have her sent to your office." Like Tsunade, Shizune hated the girl but seeing her depression after she finally stopped deluding herself about earning Sasuke's love made her realize that Sakura was no longer the foolish girl she once was. It is simply not easy to continue hating someone who has become a despairing hollow shell who is truly remorseful of her past actions and yet can do nothing to change them or their consequences. Heading off towards the hospital where Sakura spends all of her working hours as a self-taught medic-nin, Shizune sadly thought, "If only you were still here, Naruto…"

Scene Change

Seeing no reason to avoid activating the seal, Gaara had Kankuro use his puppet to activate it. Upon activation, the seal glowed for a moment and then released a plume of black smoke.

Prepared to attack if necessary, Gaara was almost surprised when he saw a robed individual standing on the seal. Due to the oversized robe and its hood as well as the cloth wrappings around his face, the figure's features were hidden except for his unnervingly dark-blue eyes which seem to almost glow from beneath the hood and possess plus-shaped pupils thus making identification impossible as Gaara asked, "Are you the leader of the Akujuu?"

Bowing, the person spoke, "In the flesh, in a manner of speaking." Although muffled, the Sunagakure ninjas were unnerved by the voice which sounded suave and yet held an unnerving undercurrent as though the person who spoke might as well as be a vicious monster in disguise.

Narrowing his eyes, Baki silently wondered, "A clone?" While uncommon, it is hardly strange for a ninja to use a clone, be it a Shadow Clone which uses only chakra or an elemental clone, to send messages.

Well aware of the use of clones to send messages, Gaara calmly asked, "Your message stated that you wish for a peaceful coexistence with our village if not more. While I am not against the principle of a peaceful coexistence, I cannot make any immediate decisions as we know too little about you and your Akujuu, which are quite infamous by the way, and thus cannot trust you at the present time. As such, I would need to discuss this matter with my people although it is quite likely that we will need you and your Akujuu to earn our trust in the event that we do consider accepting your offer." Left unspoken was that even Gaara was unnerved by the robed leader of the Akujuu simply because of his voice alone, a voice which seem to promise terrible malice upon anyone that crosses him.

Nodding in understanding, the robed figure replied, "I understand, Kazekage of Sunagakure. In fact, I am prepared to offer you a one-week grace period to make your decision as well as accept whatever you people may demand from my own, within reason of course. Just be aware that we have no intention of becoming enslaved by anyone and that we are prepared to crush anyone that dares to harm us."

Not surprised by the potential threat, as all worthy leader of a hidden ninja village will do the same albeit with a bit more tact, Gaara replied, "Your understanding and… brutal honesty are appreciated."

Just as Gaara thought that the discussion had come to a close, the robed figure spoke, "By the way, I happen to be… quite a fan of "The Unmasking of Konohagakure". If you wish, I can contact the writer of the book to attend the meeting, personally."

Shocked, everyone paid rapt attention to the robed figure as Gaara asked, "You know Naruto's current location, where?"

Waving a finger, thus revealing a clawed scaly hand wrapped in bandages, the figure spoke like a parent teasingly admonishing a child, "That's no way to ask a favour from a fellow leader of a hidden village, unless you plan to be our allies immediately, the consequences be damned."

Frustrated, Gaara resisted the urge to just threaten the Akujuu leader as he spoke, "Bring Uzumaki Naruto to our next meeting and I will seriously consider it!"

While his siblings and former teacher wore worried expressions, the Akujuu leader seemed to actually smirk beneath the cloth wrapping around his mouth as he spoke, "Excellent! I will send my messenger to you to inform you the location where the meeting will be held once your grace period of one week is over. However, be aware that I am also making the same offer to most of the other villages and nations so be prepared to meet some unpleasant folks."

"I will keep that in mind. What is your name?"

"My name is Uzumaki Kaijin, Akukage of Yamigakure…" spoke the robed figure as his body started to disintegrate into smouldering ashes…

Scene Change

Meanwhile, as Gaara was done talking to the robed figure named Uzumaki Kaijin, Tsunade stared at the robed figure with a frown on her face. Unnerved by his voice and his dark-blue eyes, what really piqued Tsunade's curiosity is how the robed figure, apparently a clone of the Akujuus' leader, momentarily glared at Sakura with such cold fury in his eyes that the girl literally trembled in fear before his gaze alone as he muttered, "You certainly know how to prepare an unpleasant reception, Hokage of Konohagakure."

Sensing that Kaijin was tempted to strike Sakura, Tsunade said nothing to protect her as she spoke, "You're the leader of the Akujuu which I've been hearing so much about recently?"

Turning his attention to Tsunade, the robed figure dramatically spoke, "Indeed, my name is Uzumaki Kaijin, Akukage of Yamigakure."

Narrowing her eyes, Tsunade spoke, "While I have no personal issue of our two villages living in peace, I highly doubt that a peaceful coexistence is possible between us unless you have something which is of interest to the village as a whole." Mentally, Tsunade added, "Not to mention that even the ninja clans are fearful of your Akujuu which have killed a number of our ninjas, relations to Danzou's damned ROOT notwithstanding." Indeed, the Akujuu had killed a number of ninjas who are ultimately related to Danzou's ROOT division which was supposed to be abolished during the rule of Tsunade's predecessor, the Third Hokage. Having a strong resentment towards Danzou for being one of the people who approved Naruto's banishment, Tsunade needed no further encouragement to accuse Danzou for leading an apparently still-active ROOT division as the members were killed during missions which Tsunade knew she never approved of. However, despite her efforts, Tsunade could not punish Danzou severely as she had wished due to his position as an important member of the council who also has support from the people that despise Naruto. As such, while Danzou no longer hold an official seat of power, the man still possess great political influence in the council, albeit indirectly.

"That is alright. I never expected peace to come for free anyway. In fact, I'm prepared to give you one week to think about accepting my offer for peace and I'm prepared to satisfy the demands of your people, within reason of course."

"That's awfully generous of you."

Chuckling, the Akujuu leader spoke, "Hardly, I'm simply giving the people of your village, who happen to value a traitor like Sasuke more than a tragic jinchuuriki like Naruto in general, a chance to redeem themselves in my eyes."

While Sakura flinched at Kaijin's statement, Tsunade raised an eyebrow and asked, "You're a fan of "The Unmasking of Konohagakure"?" It is common knowledge that outsiders who enjoy reading the book have a low opinion about the general populace of Konohagakure.

"You could say that. As a matter of fact, I actually know the author."

Shocked, Tsunade stood up and yelled, "Can you tell me where he is?"

"That… is a question which will be answered when you attend the meeting in one week's time. Oh, and since this is his home village, feel free to bring everyone that knows him to the meeting. I'm sure that there has to be at least one more person in this entire village that actually cares for him, unlike his former teammates." The Akujuu's growl was not lost as he mentioned about Naruto's former teammates. As one of the former teammates, Sakura lowered her head in shame, not that anyone cared to notice.

"Alright, where is the meeting?"

"That is something which my messenger will inform you in one week's time," replied the Akujuu leader who then added, "And feel free to inform the people of this village that Uzumaki Naruto is very much alive."

Before Tsunade could speak any further, Kaijin disintegrated into a pile smouldering ashes. Staring at the ashes, Tsunade thought to herself, "An ash-based clone? That's a new one even for me." Frowning, Tsunade continued to think, "While I'm happy that Naruto is alive and well, what is his relationship with the Akukage? Knowing him, he would have befriended anyone that understood his pain and that fellow does seem almost inhuman for some reason."

"W-what do you intend to do, Hokage-sama?" asked Sakura who had been fearful of Tsunade ever since she was almost strangled to death by her. The fact that Tsunade had continued to hate her up to the present moment only gave her more reason to be scared of her own village leader.

Glaring at Sakura, who now has a pale gaunt appearance as well as dark rings under her eyes partly due to spending long nights feverishly studying medical ninjutsu to find a way to heal Sasuke's leg, followed by many more sleepless nights after she finally gave up on Sasuke, Tsunade coldly dismissed her, "You're free to go, now get out my sight."

Stricken by Tsunade's cold dismissal, only made worse by the fact that Sakura finally did understand that she was wrong about Naruto within the second year after his banishment, Sakura could only meekly bow and leave. Glaring at the girl and not caring about the tears in her eyes which are now partly hidden beneath her pink bangs, Tsunade pondered, "As much as I hate to admit it, that bitch does have a point. On one hand, I do want to know what had happened to Naruto for all these years. On the other hand, if I push my luck any further, those bastards will revolt and may even try to get someone else to be a Hokage, preferably one who will hate Naruto and happily brand him as a missing-nin no doubt." Indeed, the only reason why Tsunade is still a Hokage despite her resentment towards the majority of the population in Konohagakure is because she cannot risk having someone like Danzo become a Hokage.

Sighing, Tsunade slumped into her seat and thought, "Naruto, my little brother, I pray that you had somehow found something worth living for…"

Scene Change

Meanwhile, in an unknown location, Uzumaki Kaijin had received the memories of his ash-clones and realized that the five major hidden villages as well as a number of other nations including smaller hidden villages are interested in hearing his offer for a peaceful coexistence. Of course, offering them valuable information such as the current location of Uzumaki Naruto, and the possible means to counter certain threats such as Orochimaru and the Bijuu-hunting Akatsuki, made negotiations quite simple. Speaking of countering threats…

"Akukage-sama, we are ready to attack Otogakure."

Turning his attention to a humanoid Akujuu with a skull-like face and a vertebra-like tail, known as an Akujuu-Ningen, Kaijin smirked beneath his bandages as he spoke, "Excellent, I shall lead the attack myself." Kaijin's smirk became positively malicious as he added, "Soon, Otogakure will fall and, with its annihilation, the world will acknowledge the might of Yamigakure!"

Scene Change

Orochimaru was displeased, to put it mildly. A pale-skinned man with jet-black hair and snake-like yellow eyes, the man had been responsible for killing Hiruzen Sarutobi, the man who was once his teacher before he betrayed Konohagakure and became a missing-nin. Obsessed with learning all the ninjutsu in the world and becoming the next God of Shinobi, Orochimaru had done many unethical experiments to achieve it twisted ambition. However, despite his intellect and power, the man had faced more setbacks that he would ever willingly admit.

The first was when he killed Hiruzen who, in a moment of self-sacrifice for his damnable village, decided to take Orochimaru down with him. While the attempt had obviously failed, it had effectively crippled his arms thereby forcing him to retreat. As for healing his rotting arms, Orochimaru tried to obtain the help of his former teammate, the legendary medic-nin, Tsunade, only to fail again. Forced to take a new body, Orochimaru had hoped to gain Sasuke's body but in the end could not because someone just had to cripple the Uchiha boy thereby rendering him useless unless his leg heals. What was most galling however is the simple fact that his failure to be healed by Tsunade, or at least killing her should she refuse to heal him, as well as his inability to obtain Sasuke's body, was all because of a certain blond brat dressed in a ridiculous orange jumpsuit.

As if that humiliating series of setbacks were not bad enough, Orochimaru had been pretty much besieged by an unknown enemy ever since the end of the first year after that blond brat's banishment from his own home village. The attacks were simple at first, mainly guerrilla attacks and sabotage for missions which involved his Otogakure ninjas. However, as time passed, the attacks grew ever more aggressive and bolder as the assailants started to attack his hidden hideouts and even went so far as to steal his research materials and his test subjects. Even more frustrating is the fact that the assailants were obviously not from Akatsuki, Konohagakure or any of the known ninja villages as any and all sighting of these assailants invariably involved dragon-like beasts which have scales hard enough to repel ordinary ninja weapons and even weaker ninjutsu. What is more, any attempt to bring any back for sampling or interrogation ended in failure as the creatures somehow combust and burn into ashes upon death or capture. The creatures also have an uncanny ability to somehow strike only the locations where Orochimaru is not personally present thereby maximizing their attacks against him with minimal risk of suffering his wrath.

Gritting his teeth, Orochimaru knew that his village is now reduced to a mere shadow of its admittedly small former self and that the only reason why his main headquarters is still untouched is because he is present to kill any who dare to invade his territory. He could not even take solace in the fact that the same creatures have also attacked Akatsuki, an organization he was once a member of before he defected to pursue his own goals, thus becoming their enemy as well. Clenching his fist, Orochimaru swore that he will find whoever is in charge of these creatures and make him suffer for it.

Suddenly, as if fate had decided to challenge that oath, a desperate Otogakure ninja barged into the lab where Orochimaru would often conduct his research and breathlessly reported, "Otokage-sama! The Akujuu… they are coming!"

Hearing the given name of those accursed monsters which have been a thorn in Orochimaru's side for almost two years, the man clenched his fist tightly enough to almost draw blood as he released a downright palpable murderous aura and asked, "How many?"

Almost soiling his pants, the ninja meekly reported, "We saw nine of them, scouts most likely, Otokage-sama."

"I see… have the men continue observation but do not attack them. I will deal with them myself!"

Not wanting to spend another moment with the man who might kill him at any moment, the ninja immediately responded before he left, "Understood!"

Scene Change

Soon after realizing the presence of the Akujuu, Orochimaru set off the face the creatures alongside with one of his exceedingly few trusted allies, a bespectacled young man with grey hair and dark eyes named Yakushi Kabuto. Worried, the young man spoke, "Are you this is wise, Orochimaru-sama? This could be a trap."

Glaring at the young man, Orochimaru would have killed him had it not been for the fact that Kabuto is one of his few true allies and that he did raise a good point. Turning his attention back to the direction they were heading towards to, Orochimaru asked, "And what would you have me do? Hide and cower before enemies that would not even appear before me? I think not!"

Knowing Orochimaru's ego, Kabuto knew that reasoning the man is nearly a lost cause, nearly because Orochimaru can be reasoned with to retreat once he realizes that his defeat or death is imminent. Orochimaru may be an evil egomaniacal madman but he is also a man who is most unwilling to die, a fact proven by his numerous techniques to ensure that he would survive from almost anything. Besides, he does have a point that hiding from these enemies that have been avoiding him while attacking everything else associated with him is a wasted effort.

Before long, they arrived at the site and both Orochimaru and Kabuto took a good look at the creatures for the very first time. If they were being honest, they would have said that the creatures were nothing short of impressively intimidating as they all bore dark-coloured scales, lava-like orange lines which seem to almost glow, horns, clawed limbs, sharp teeth, eyes of crimson, gold or orange which seem to almost glow and bore plus-shaped pupils, and bird-like digitigrade feet.

Leading the group was a creature which Orochimaru quickly recognized to be an Akujuu-Ningen. Following the lead of the humanoid Akujuu which strode with the calm confidence of a predator were two huge ape-like Akujuu with tough armoured scales, turtle-like carapaces on the upper backs, heavily muscular builds, and thick powerful tails known as Akujuu-Saru. The two ape-like Akujuu, which were obviously the muscular heavy-hitters of the group, were in turn escorted by four wolf-like Akujuu which faces which resemble wolfish skulls and whip-like tails known as Akujuu-Ouka. The last two Akujuu were known as Akujuu-Hebi due to having a serpentine tail, a humanoid upper body, stubby claws for vestigial legs and snake-like heads. Slithering like snakes, the Akujuu-Hebi followed the other creatures ahead of them.

Glaring at the creatures which moved more like an organized ninja team than mere animals, Orochimaru was about to order the attack when the humanoid Akujuu suddenly stopped and spoke, "We know that you are here. Show yourselves!"

Deeply unnerved by the unnaturally deep voice which sounded like a breathy whisper and yet could be heard as clearly as a vicious roar, and the fact that the humanoid one could actually talk, something which had never happened before, the Otogakure ninjas paused for a moment before Orochimaru decided to put an end to the charade. Appearing on a branch, Orochimaru glared at the monsters below him as he spoke, "Do you know who I am?"

Smirking, the Akujuu-Ningen replied, "Orochimaru, the cowardly trash of Otogakure, I presume."

Hearing the monster's downright nonchalant disrespectful statement, the ninjas of Otogakure actually froze at the sheer audacity of it until Orochimaru suddenly appeared behind the humanoid creature and stabbed him in the back with his poisoned sword. However, instead of dying, the creature simply chuckled before breaking down in a burst of ashes and glowing-hot embers. Barely avoiding the hot embers, Orochimaru appeared on a random tree branch when he heard the same unnerving voice speaking behind him, "Looking for someone?"

Striking the speaker in a quick whirl, Orochimaru only struck air as when he suddenly heard loud screams from his men around him. Turning his attention towards his men Orochimaru's eyes widened in shock as he realized that they are under attack by gecko-like Akujuu with short stubby tails which somehow managed to sneak around them undetected. While unconcerned for the safety of his men, the implications that the Akujuu are capable of sneaking past him, the snake sage and leader of Otogakure, could only mean that Orochimaru is in far greater danger than expected. Suddenly sensing danger, Orochimaru barely avoided the two gecko-like Akujuu, which are known as Akujuu-Tokage, which appeared above him. Deciding to retreat and gather his forces, Orochimaru was about to escape when he suddenly heard a monstrous cry from above…

Scene Change

High above the trees, a swarm of flying Akujuu were making their way towards Otogakure. Standing calmly on top of the head of a large whale-like Akujuu which bore flippers for legs and arms, an Akujuu known as Akujuu-Kujira, was a smirking Uzumaki Kaijin. With a large number of the whale-like Akujuu following his lead, escorted by a larger group of smaller but faster and swifter dragon-like fliers with bat-like wings for arms known as Akujuu-Tsubasa, Kaijin continued to lead the creatures onwards towards the hidden village, confident that the village will fall…

Scene Change

Staring at the flying creatures, Orochimaru realized that he had been tricked. Gritting his teeth, Orochimaru was about to order his surviving men to follow him back to the village when the Akujuu-Ningen spoke from behind him, "Surely you don't think that you can get rid of us so easily."

Barely dodging the creature's swipe with its clawed hand, Orochimaru glared hatefully at it and demanded, "What is your goal, creature? What benefit can you possibly gain from becoming my enemy?"

Smirking, the Akujuu-Nin replied, "You speak as though you can easily destroy us." Dodging Orochimaru's sword, the creature added, "You may be a powerful sage, your pathetic cowardice notwithstanding, but you are ultimately merely a single individual against our army."

Narrowing his eyes, Orochimaru then smirked as he spoke, "That is true, so allow me to even the odds, Summoning Technique!"

As the cloud of smoke, a typical consequence of a summoning ninjutsu, cleared, the Akujuu-Ningen looked upward to see Orochimaru smirking smugly at him from his perch on top of Manda, the purple-scaled horned boss summon of the snakes. A vicious summon who demands sacrifices, the titanic snake was about to demand an explanation from Orochimaru when he caught a certain scent which made him tremble as he spoke, "No… it can't be…"

Orochimaru lost his smirk as he gazed down at Manda as the giant snake started to actually panic in fear, something which he had never expected to see even if he had lived several lifetimes. Looking down, Manda caught sight of the sneering Akujuu-Ningan and practically shrieked, "T-Tiamat-Spawn…!"

Unfamiliar with the term, Orochimaru was shocked when Manda actually chose to flee instead of facing the Akujuu. Barely able to keep his balance, Orochimaru demanded, "What is the meaning of this? Surely you're not so cowardly that you cannot even face one miserable Akujuu!"

Rather than answer, Manda continued to flee as fast as his serpentine belly would allow. However, as the giant snake was fleeing away from Otogakure, Orochimaru was forced to quickly cancel the summoning and then travel back to the village. As he made his way back, Orochimaru was forced to realize two facts, the first being that his own snake summons are somehow fearful of the Akujuu which are also known as Tiamat-spawn. The second fact is that the Akujuu army is far larger than he anticipated as he was forced to fight his way through numerous Akujuu which are making their way to the village as well…

Scene Change

By the time Orochimaru had arrived to the village, he was greeted by the sight of a decimated settlement as various kinds of Akujuu besieged the village. Lead by the humanoid Akujuu-Ningen, Akujuu-Saru smashed through the defences while Akujuu-Tsubasa attacked them from above by either dive-bombing them or by breathing gouts of flame. Akujuu-Ouka, and raptor-like Akujuu with bird-like faces and small clawed hands known as Akujuu-Hashiru, on the other hand sped through the defences, causing as much damage as they can in their quick and vicious assault. Sticking close to the shadows, Akujuu-Hebi and Akujuu-Tokage sneaked past the defenders and proceeded to cause mayhem behind enemy lines. What truly made any attempt to regroup and retreat impossible however were the Akujuu-Mimizu, worm-like Akujuu with skull-like faces and stubby claws for limbs, as they literally burrowed their way past the defenders, popping up to attack any unsuspecting victims, demolishing buildings by breaking their foundations, and aiding the Akujuu-Saru in tunnelling their way past the defenders for other Akujuu to attack from behind enemy lines. The only type of Akujuu which was not attacking was the Akujuu-Kijura and even then it is safer to assume that they are potentially dangerous if given the chance. To put it simply, the ninjas of Otogakure were fighting a losing battle and the village will fall.

Staring at the settlement which will soon be reduced to ruin, Orochimaru was at a loss when a voice spoke, "Quite the sight, isn't it."

Turning to face the speaker, Orochimaru saw a robed figure and growled, "Who are you?" Furious egomaniacal monster in human skin or not, Orochimaru knew better than to simply attack the stranger who is obviously related to the Akujuu.

Bowing, the robed figure spoke, "Uzumaki Kaijin, Akukage of Yamigakure, at your humble disservice."

Noting the word, "disservice", Orochimaru gritted his teeth as he spoke, "So you're the leader of these damned Akujuu!" Drawing out his sword, he demanded, "Give me one good reason why I shouldn't kill you!"

Unfazed, amused even, by Orochimaru's threat, Kaijin drawled, "Does the fact that your boss-summon is terrified by my adorable hell-spawned minions count as one?"

Suddenly remembering about Manda's terrified panic, Orochimaru asked, "If these are Tiamat-Spawn, then it easy to assume that you are a contract holder of a type of summon led by a boss-summon named Tiamat." Left unsaid was that Orochimaru was worried about what sort of terrifying monstrosity Tiamat was that just seeing its spawn alone would be able to inspire such fear in Manda.

"Close, but not quite," replied Kaijin as he raised his bandaged hand and tore off the bandages, revealing a clawed hand with scales and orange volcanic lines not unlike that of an Akujuu. "You see, unlike you or the other two members of the Sannin from Konohagakure, I do not have a contract to summon them at will. If anything, my relationship to the Akujuu is something in between being a sage-summoner and a symbiotic partner not unlike that of the Inuzuka clan or the Aburame clan.

Well aware of the Inuzuka clan and the Aburame clans, two prominent clans in Konohagakure with a symbiotic relationship with their dogs and beetle-like Kikaichuu respectively, Orochimaru frowned as he thought, "Sage-summoner, does that mean that he is aware of sage training?" Deciding to defeat the robed figure and force him to cease the attack, Orochimaru suddenly attacked him by creating Shadow-Snakes from his hands which sought to capture him. However, rather than capturing Kaijin, Orochimaru's snakes only caught a random log as the robed figure spoke, "As much as a part of me would love to kill you in a quick but brutal manner, I find is much more amusing to simply tear your pathetic excuse of a heart apart."

Almost confused by the statement, Orochimaru was about to attack Kainjion again when he suddenly summoned four Shadow-Clones. Surprised, Orochimaru was soon forced to engage two of the four Shadow-Clones while Kaijin took out a pair of paper-seals, one on each hand, and placed them onto the back of the head for each Shadow-Clone. Seeing Kaijin's actions, Orochimaru suddenly recalled that the actions are similar to that of his own kinjutsu, the Impure World Resurrection Technique, a technique which can be used to summon and control powerful ninjas from the dead. Eyes wide in panic, Orochimaru was sure that Kaijin was about to summon a Shadow-Clone equivalent of a powerful ninja to fight against him. However, he could do nothing to stop Kaijin as his two other clones suddenly created armour and weapons from using chakra alone. One of them took the appearance of some sort of court jester who wielded a sceptre which quickly changed into a wicked scythe while the other wore heavy plate armour and wielded a massive spiked hammer. While the jester-clone attacked in an erratic and unpredictable manner, a style of fighting compounded by near-inhuman flexibility and mad laughter coming from the mask which bore a nightmarishly demented grin, the juggernaut of a Shadow-Clone moved more quickly than his bulky frame indicated and struck with enough force to easily shatter trees and boulders. Working together, the two altered clones kept Orochimaru at bay until Kaijin suddenly said, "It is done, you may return, Delusion, Apathy."

Turning to face Kaijin, the jester-clone seemed to actually pout beneath his mask as he spoke, "Aw, and I wanted to have some more fun hurting him!"

Grunting as he hefted his massive hammer, the juggernaut whose helmet hid his entire face except for his eyes spoke, "That pathetic scum will perish eventually, so what does it matter?"

The jester, who was obviously Delusion, spat, "Yeah, whatever! Just make sure we get some popcorn while we watch the Boss make him suffer!" Delusion then wore a mad grin to match the mask over his face as he cackled and disappeared in a cloud of burning ashes. The juggernaut, known as Apathy, simply grunted in mild frustration as he too disappeared.

Seeing that the two clones had disappeared on their own accord, Orochimaru warily glared at Kaijin and his two remaining clones as he asked, "And what exactly do you have in mind to make me suffer?"

Smirking, Kaijin snapped his fingers thus causing the two clones to suddenly transform before the Snake Sage. When the transformation was done, Orochimaru's eyes widened in shock as he spoke the words he never thought he would ever say again, "Mother…? Father…?"

Scene Change

Kabuto, who had barely avoided being torn apart by the Akujuu-Tokage and being flattened by a panicking Manda, was making his way back to Otogakure, a journey made more difficult by roaming Akujuu who were obviously on the lookout for anyone from the village, when he head laughter. Upon hearing the laughter, Kabuto felt a shiver crawl down his spine as it was the cruellest sound he had ever heard, which is saying something considering the kind of man Orochimaru is. Realizing that it was coming from the village, Kabuto would have seriously considered just leaving it be had it not been for the fact that Orochimaru would kill him or worse if he did so. As such, Kabuto reluctantly made his way to the village and quickly saw a sight which made him pale.

Orochimaru, the infamous Snake Sage and leader of Otogakure, was crying tears or despair and impotent rage as his body was ensnared in chains made out of chakra which came out of a seal below him. Standing before the snarling Snake Sage was a robed figure Kabuto had never seen before as he smirked and said, "Now that is what I call a harsh family reunion! Of course, given your past misdeeds, I can't really blame your parents for being so very disappointed in you! I mean, seriously, did you really think that your parents would be proud of your so-called achievements in being a complete bastard of a villain? I know mine wouldn't!"

Struggling against the chains which somehow cancelled his numerous abilities to escape, Orochimaru demanded, "Who in the pits of hell are you?!"

The man's smirking visage suddenly became grimly sombre as he spoke, "You want to know? Alright, I'll show you." Lowering the hooded cowl of his robes, the robed person then removed the cloth covering his face, revealing sun-blond hair and, more shockingly, three whisker-like marks on each cheek.

Upon seeing the unmasked intruder who was obviously related to the Akujuu, especially with his exposed hand which resembled that of an Akujuu's own clawed limb, Orochimaru and Kabuto were shocked at the realization of his true identity. Staring into cerulean-blue eyes that bore plus-shaped pupils and a malicious glint, Orochimaru gaped as he spoke in disbelief, "U-Uzumaki Naruto?"

Uzumaki Kaijin, leader of the Akujuu and Akukage of Yamigakure, also once known as Uzumaki Naruto, banished genin of Konohagakure and jinchuuriki of the Kyuubi no Youko, smirked maliciously as he spoke in a cruel tone which sounded nothing like the cheerfully optimistic boy he once was, "The one the and the same, believe it!"

-Chapter Fin-

Note: Not much to say but I have to ask, how many of you actually did not suspect the twist at the end (I personally guess a rather small few in number)?

Akujuu Types:

General: All Akujuu are draconian in appearance with scales, tails, horns, clawed limbs and bird-like digitigrade feet. They also have ears although they can either be pointed or fin-like.

Akujuu-Ningen: Humanoid Akujuu with a lean body build, a vertebra-like-like tail, and a human skull-like face (the most intelligent of the Akujuu, it also has the best overall strength among the Akujuu but are few in number)

Akujuu-Saru: Apish Akujuu with a heavily muscular built, a prominent armoured lower jaw, armoured scales, a turtle-like carapace, and a thick muscular tail (strongest and toughest of the Akujuu, it is also an accomplished digger but it is also the slowest and least agile of the Akujuu)

Akujuu-Ouka: Wolf-like Akujuu with a quadruped body build, a wolf skull-like face and a whip-like prehensile tail (an Akujuu with the highest endurance, it also has a sharp sense of smell but lacks proper hands)

Akujuu-Hebi: Serpentine Akujuu with a serpentine tail, a snake-like head, a humanoid upper body and clawed stubs for legs (most agile of the Akujuu, it is also a capable swimmer and can sense heat)

Akujuu-Tokage: Gecko-like Akujuu with a gecko-like head, a short tail and a lean humanoid body build (the stealthiest of the Akujuu, it can crawl on walls and ceilings even without the aid of chakra)

Akujuu-Tsubasa: Winged Akujuu with bat-like wings in place of arms, bird-like feet, and a draconian head (the only Akujuu which can fly, it also has sharp eyes which can see well even with low light but its wings are vulnerable to damage)

Akujuu-Hashiru: Raptor-like Akujuu with a lean body build, a bird-like face, a flexible rudder-like tail and small clawed hands (fastest of the Akujuu, it is built to run but has weak arms)

Akujuu-Mimizu: Snake or worn-like Akujuu with a skull-like face, armoured scales, as well as stubby claws for legs and arms (efficient digger and swimmer but obviously lacking in limbs)

Akujuu-Kujira: Whale-like Akujuu with flippers for arms and legs (capable of flight and prolonged diving but lacking in combat ability other than long-ranged air-to-ground bombardment)


	3. Chapter 2

**Naruto: Overlord of The Ashes**

Disclaimer: This will be a Naruto fanfiction with elements borrowed from Overlord, Diablo, Warhammer and maybe even Dragon Age and Dragon Quest. This story will try to follow canon settings but I cannot guarantee it. A word of warning, Naruto will be darker than canon and be Konohagakure's antagonist (and I sincerely pray will not be a Jerk-stu)!

**Chapter 2: Reunion**

A week had passed ever since Tsunade's first meeting with the Akukage, the very same period of time when she heard about the destruction of Otogakure, a hidden village led by none other than her traitorous former teammate, Orochimaru. While she would never mourn for the man, the news that his village had been destroyed was unnerving as the evidence gathered indicated that none of the known hidden ninja villages took part in its destruction. Granted, there was the Akatsuki but Jiraiya's spy network confirmed that they did not take part in the destruction of Otogakure as they were too busy hunting down jinchuuriki and defending themselves from their own problems. That left only one likely suspect, the Akujuu of Yamigakure led by their Akukage.

Upon mention of her suspicions about the Akujuu destroying Otogakure, the council of Konohagakure unanimously agreed that Yamigakure is dangerously powerful. Surprisingly enough, the vast majority of the council was willing to at least hear what Uzumaki Kaijin has to offer to them in return for a peaceful coexistence, if only because they do not want to immediately go to open war against the Akujuu. Nevertheless, Tsunade was glad for their rare moment of mutual agreement and cooperation as she recently knew something about the Akujuu which she had yet to inform to the council.

"Hokage-sama, an Akujuu had been sighted beyond the village walls."

Nodding to the tiger-masked ANBU, Tsunade got up and said, "Tiger, gather Iruka, Teams Gai, Kurenai, Asuma and Ebisu, as well as Jiraiya and Kakashi."

"What of the other remaining members of Team Kakashi?"

Glaring at Tiger, Tsunade growled, "Ignore them. The Akukage apparently knows Naruto and the last thing I want is that Haruno bitch or that Uchiha brat provoking him or his Akujuu into waging war against us. Now go!"

Heeding her command, Tiger inwardly sighed as he thought, "While I have no question about her refusing the Uchiha, I'm not so sure about that Haruno girl." Like most people who cared for Naruto or at least respected his achievements, Tiger disliked Sakura but eventually saw no more reason to continue disliking her after hearing about her depression when she finally snapped out of her deluded "love" for Sasuke from his former superior, Hatake Kakashi, and seeing it for himself. As such, Tiger was one of the few people who felt that Sakura should at the very least be given a chance to apologize to Naruto, although he would have to admit that the chances of her being forgiven by the boy is vanishingly small as everyone has a breaking point in their ability to forgive another, Naruto included. Sasuke on the other hand was a different matter entirely.

After his leg was healed by a still-deluded Sakura, and the punch she gave to him after his leg was fully healed, Sasuke underwent an intense training regime under the personal guidance of Danzo himself. While effectively bedridden for two years, the boy was able to make surprisingly good progress despite the circumstances and can now be easily chuunin or even tokubetsu jounin in rank. Despite his progress, Sasuke was far from satisfied and he hated Naruto almost as much as he hated Itachi if not just as much. The fact that Tsunade made sure that Sasuke can never leave the village or use his cursed seal only made him even bitterer as he was denied the chance to leave the village and seek out Naruto as well as Itachi. Not surprisingly, Sasuke has the support of everyone who hated Naruto while those that cared or respected the blond boy all despised him to some degree or another due to his desire to have his revenge on Naruto, most likely with fatal consequences. Combined with Sasuke's arrogant superiority complex, it was hardly surprising that Tsunade would forbid Sasuke from attending the meeting with the Akukage, especially since Naruto would be involved.

Scene Change

Before long, Tsunade arrived to meet the Akujuu-Ouka alongside with Kakashi, Jiraiya and Iruka, as well as Teams Gai, Asuma, Kurenai and Ebisu. Surprisingly enough, a young woman with purple hair tied into a spiky ponytail, brown eyes and wearing a tan jacket over a mesh bodysuit as well as a miniskirt decided to join them. Named Mitarashi Anko, she was quite a fan of the Unmasking of Konohagakure and is also Iruka's fiancé, a surprising relationship give the fact that she works as a member of Konohagakure's Torture and Interrogation Division with a an obvious sadistic streak while Iruka is a humble academy teacher. Tsunade's assistant, Shizune, was made to remain in Konohagakure to manage the hospital in Tsunade's absence in the meantime.

Using his Kikaichu to create an Insect Clone, Shino retrieved the scroll from the Akujuu and opened it. Activating a seal which was written onto the scroll, a clone of Uzumaki Kaijin appeared before the gathered group.

Looking at the group before him, Kaijin narrowed his eyes at Kakashi and said, "Strange, I could have sworn that the pink-haired girl was still alive the last time I saw her."

Raising an eyebrow, Tsunade explained, "I did not inform her to join as I was sure that she would be of no benefit to any of us should she ever meet Naruto. Besides, you obviously did not like her."

Turning his attention to Tsunade, Kaijin spoke, "While I am certainly not arguing against your reasoning, I am sure that I requested that you bring EVERYONE that knows him to our meeting. That includes his former teammates as well."

Frowning, Tsunade asked, "Are you sure? Those two will only seek to bring harm to Naruto should they ever meet him."

Nodding, Kaijin said, "I am sure. Besides, that boy is no longer the dead last he once was nor is he without protection. Also, I will give you my word that their presence will not jeopardize my peace offering to your village, although I will not hesitate to harm them should they choose to misbehave."

Sighing, Tsunade said, "Very well, if that is what you want, I will have them here as soon as possible."

Scene Change

To Tsunade's great reluctance, Sakura and Sasuke joined the group within half an hour. Almost everyone glared hatefully at the pair, especially at Sasuke who did not even have the courtesy to be ashamed of his own misdeeds unlike Sakura. While almost no one forgave her, their hatred towards her generally cooled off somewhat when she finally stopped obsessing over Sasuke and became melancholic instead of hateful towards Naruto. There were exceptions though as Tsunade still hated her bitterly even to this day. As for Rock Lee who once had a crush on Sakura, much like Naruto in fact, the boy never quite forgave her for what she had done to Naruto unlike Ino or Kakashi. While admittedly "unyouthful", Gai understood Lee's inability to forgive the girl but also told him that he should never allow himself to be consumed by hate like Sasuke, an advice which Lee took to heart.

While Sakura withered from their glares, Sasuke merely scoffed and said, "So where is the Dobe?"

"Eager to return the favour for shattering your leg, I presume?"

Shocked, Sasuke and Sakura both turned around to see a smirking bandaged face which reminded them of Zabuza, the Demon of the Mist. The other gathered ninjas were also shocked as none of them even sensed him move.

Quickly backing away, Sasuke demanded, "Who are you, and what do you know about that worthless Dobe?"

Raising an unseen brow, Kaijin asked, "Worthless, you say?" Chuckling humourlessly, he spoke, "The last time I checked, being able to face the likes of Momochi Zabuza, Sabaku no Gaara, Kazahana Dotou, and Orochimaru, and somehow live to tell the tale, although it is also admittedly true that he did not succeed on his own on almost all accounts, are deeds worthy of respect regardless of that boy being the dead last of his graduating year. In fact, I heard that he even managed to beat you once all on his own by surprising you though the use of Shadow Clones and some rope."

Gritting his teeth, Sasuke was about to repeat his demand when Uzumaki Kaijin suddenly spoke in a deep, downright demonic tone, "**Do not think for even a second that I doubt your desire to bring harm to Naruto. I am only bringing you to this meeting because I respect his desire to rub the fact that he is alive and well in spite of his unfair banishment onto your arrogant face. If you so much as glare at Naruto with your Sharingan activated, I will rip those eyes out and crush them with my own bare hands. Am I understood?**"

Unnerved by Kaijin's demonic voice which held an absolute promise of pain and torment, Sasuke could only nod hesitantly as Kaijin then responded, "Excellent, if seems that you are the top rookie of your graduating class for a reason after all." Turning his attention to Tsunade's group, he then said, "Now, back to business…"

Scene Change

"…The meeting will be held in a secret location of my own choosing," explained Kaijin as he took out a compass-like device. Offering the device to Gaara, he added, "Personally, I'd prefer using a teleportation technique to get the meeting started much quicker but I understand that not everyone is comfortable of being teleported to unknown territory. Instead, this device will guide you to the location of the meeting place. Just don't be surprised if the thing decides to point towards a different direction as the meeting place may… change on short notice depending on the situation. As I've said before, I've invited leaders from other ninja villages so be prepared to meet them. I would also appreciate it that you do not harm then unnecessarily, especially the ninjas of Konohagakure as Naruto has wanted to meet them for some time."

"Even his own former teammates?" asked a quizzical Gaara.

"Especially them, if only to rub in the fact that he is alive and well in spite of everything," replied Kaijin.

Seeing nothing wrong with the explanation, Gaara then asked, "Before you disperse yourself, can I ask you a few questions?"

"You may, although my answers will largely depend on your queries."

"First of all, I wish to know why you specifically requested for our jinchuuriki to attend the meeting. Second, were you the one responsible for destroying Otogakure?"

Rubbing his chin, Kaijin then replied, "Fair enough, the reason why I'm inviting jinchuuriki to the meeting is because Naruto is one himself and would therefore like to meet them. I'm sure you of all people can understand the need to meet others who can understand the suffering of one cursed to become the vessel of a Bijuu. As for your second query, let's just say that Naruto was involved in that event as well and leave it at that."

Shocked, Kankuro asked, "Wait, you're telling me that squirt actually helped you kill Orochimaru?" Unlike some people in Konohagakure, Kankuro had no trouble in believing that Naruto can take on Orochimaru if only because he took on Gaara and actually won. Besides, it would not be the first time Naruto was involved in a fight against the man.

Amused, Kaijin replied, "Not quite. Orochimaru is the sort of scum to find a way to survive no matter the odds against him and is therefore infuriatingly difficult to fully eliminate. However, be assured that my forces are eliminating those loose ends to ensure his complete demise even as we speak."

Nodding in acceptance, Gaara then asked, "Is Naruto doing well, in spite of everything?"

"As I have said before, he is well in spite of everything. In fact, he actually managed to get himself a fiancé or two."

Quirking a brow, Gaara thought, "Note to self, ask Naruto about his love life when I meet him. Interrogation with the threat of piling sand into his underpants is an option." Strangely enough for the Sunagakure ninjas, Kaijin actually looked like he had a slight chill running down his spine at that moment…

Scene Change

By using the compass-like device, the ninjas from each ninja village were able to gather at the meeting place. As forewarned, the compass-like device has a tendency to change directions over time due to the seemingly "mobile" nature of the meeting place. Nevertheless, the ninjas paid little notice to it as they all eventually gathered at a clearing which was noted to have some unusual rock formations that were obviously manmade.

Looking at her surroundings, Tsunade noted that ninjas from other hidden villages had also arrived, including a number of smaller ninja villages, and even a few Daimyos with their own escorts. Turning her attention to the Konohagakure ninjas in her group, Tsunade said, "Alright, remember what we came here for. We're here to discuss of a possible peaceful coexistence with Yamigakure as well as find any information about Naruto and his whereabouts." Glaring at Sasuke and Sakura, Tsunade added, "And do NOT antagonize anyone! The last thing we need is provoking the Akukage, or anyone else for that matter, into waging war against us. I'm sure you all remembered what happened to Otogakure."

Everyone but Sasuke nodded in understanding while the Uchiha ninja chose to simply grunt in acknowledgement look away from Tsunade. While he may not hate Tsunade as much as he hated Naruto and Itachi, he has no respect for her as she blatantly refused to heal his leg and even got Jiraiya to add a seal onto him which would painfully kill him if he ever uses his cursed seal or leave the village without Tsunade's approval.

Meanwhile, a large muscular man with dark skin, white hair, a small moustache and a goatee, as well as pronounced cheek bones noticed the Konohagakure ninjas. Known as Ei, the Fourth Raikage of Kumogakure, the man is known for being headstrong and easily aggravated but is also known for loving his family as well as doing whatever it takes to protect his home village. A fan of the "Umnasking of Konohagakure", Ei had recently ceased practicing his original belief that a Jinchuuriki is only meant to be a tool of the village which has no right to make his or her own decisions. Granted, jinchuuriki in Kumogakure are treated slightly better than elsewhere but it did mean that both Killer Bee and Nii Yugito, jinchuuriki of the Hachibi no Kyoguu and Nibi no Bakeneko respectively, can now make their own decisions as long as they do not forsake their duties as ninjas of Kumogakure. The fact that Bee is Ei's adopted brother certainly made it difficult for anyone who hated Bee for his status as a jinchuuriki to strike at him without risking getting punched in the face by an infuriated Ei regardless.

Seeing the Konohagakure ninjas, Ei resisted the urge to snort in disgust as he viewed the people who wanted Naruto gone as utterly blind and brainless fools. While certainly not a fan of Konohagakure or its ninjas, even he knew that Naruto's notable deeds are worthy of respect, even some degree of hero-adoration amongst the younger generation despite coming from a different village. His sentiment was shared by a short elderly man with a large red nose, large eyebrows and a mostly bald head known as Oonoki, the Third Tsuchikage of Iwagakure.

Like his Kumogakure counterpart, Oonoki has no love for Konohagakure although it can be said that he does not like any of the other ninja villages either for that matter. Much like the late third Hokage, Sarutobi Hiruzen, Oonoki is a veteran from the Third Ninja World War and is also known as Oonoki of Both Scales. On a side note, he enjoyed reading the Unmasking of Konohagakure and, despite being aware that Naruto is a former ninja of Konohagakure and his appearance reminded him of the Fourth Hokage, has no grudges against him. Besides, who can hold a grudge against a boy who can make a fool out of the ANBU forces in Konohagakure or knock out Hiruzen, the infamous God of Shinobi, with the Sexy no Jutsu?

Tsunade was not the only female Kage as there was Terumi Mei, the Fifth Mizukage of Kirigakure. A slender woman in her thirties, she had ankle-length auburn hair and light-green eyes. Unlike her predecessor, Yagura, Mei cares for her people and quickly stopped the bloodline purges which he had instigated, amongst other barbaric practices which made Kirigakure so infamous. However, while no one exactly knew how the Yagura passed away, many feared that he was manipulated into instigating the many terrible deeds he had committed over his period of reign. Yet another fan of the book, Mei had respect for Naruto who persevered in spite of everything done against him and was willing to forgive the evils the people of his own village had committed upon him prior to his banishment. A bit of a flirt, Mei was quite interested to see Naruto in person and wondered if he had grown up into a good-looking young man. Recognizing Sasuke, Mei noted that he may look cute but his hateful glare would make him quite undesirable to anyone who would notice his rage and arrogance.

Last to arrive was Gaara as he came with Fuu, Kankuro, Temari and Baki by his side with a number of Sunagakure ANBU behind him. Noticing the Konohagakure ninjas, Gaara was sympathetic to those who cared for Naruto but frowned in obvious disapproval when he saw Sasuke and Sakura. Already aware that they are attending the meeting as well, Gaara ignored them as he turned his attention to Tsunade and asked, "I'm assuming that you came here to finally see Naruto as well?"

Nodding, Tsunade said, "Officially, I came here to discuss about a peaceful coexistence with Yamigakure. Unofficially, I came to see that brat of mine and hug him, after giving him a punch of tough love of course."

"You know, if I didn't know any better, I could swear that you actually enjoy hurting him," said an amused voice.

Hearing the unexpected voice, everyone turned their gaze upon the speaker who was none other than Uzumaki Kaijin. Frowning at the bandaged Akukage, Ei demanded, "Where the hell did you come from?"

Smirking, Kaijin replied, "Now that would be telling you my ninja tricks and, let's be honest, only a fool would tell others the secrets of his tricks so readily." Although a short-tempered man, Ei knew that Kaijin had a point and so remained quiet despite his annoyance.

Crossing his arms over his chest, Oonoki asked, "I'm assuming that this is the meeting place you were talking about?"

Smirking, Kaijin replied, "No." Pointing one finger heavenwards as a large shadow appeared over the clearing, he explained, "THIS is."

Looking up, everyone was shocked as they saw a city literally floating above them, quickly recognizing it as the Land of Sky, a land which was involved in the Second Ninja World War only to be defeated by Konohagakure for challenging the five major ninja villages. Amused by their gaping expressions, Kaijin dramatically gestured as he spoke, "It is with great humility that I, Uzumaki Kaijin, welcome you all to my humble mobile abode, the **Yami no Sora**!"

As if heeding his unspoken call, Akujuu-Tsubasa flew out of the floating city, swarming around it and literally darkening the sky. While everyone was impressed or intimidated by the sight, Jiraiya was especially so as he recalled what the Great Toad Sage had said to him not long after he discovered Otogakure's destruction…

Flashback

After witnessing the ruins of Otogakure, and being surprised at seeing the terrified expressions of his toad summons which somehow knew who or what had attacked the place, Jiraiya immediately went to the Toad Summons' homeland through reverse-summoning to speak to the Great Toad Sage.

A giant elderly toad, the Great Toad Sage was uncharacteristically grim and frightened as he spoke, "The creatures that attacked Otogakure were no ordinary beasts, even by our own standards."

Frowning, Jiraiya asked, "What do you mean by that?"

Sighing, the Great Toad Sage explained, "These creatures which attacked your former teammate's village, are most likely descendants of a terrible demon which existed even before the age of the Endless War."

Already not liking the implications, Jiraiya groaned, "Great, as if losing Naruto who is now gods-know-where, realizing that Oro-teme is probably dead after seeing his village destroyed, and dealing with the Akatsuki who are obviously searching for jinchuuriki, including Naruto, are not bad enough!" Sighing, Jiraiya asked the elderly toad, "Just what is that demon anyway?"

"She is known as Tiamat, the five-headed dragoness of primordial chaos and the great mother of monsters and demons."

Raising an eyebrow, Jiraiya asked, "Tiamat? I never heard of her."

"I would be surprised that you did, as she is a demon almost as old as the Juubi no Akuma itself and is not very well known to you humans, at least not after the Endless War which predated the Ninja Age. However, while the Juubi no Akuma is believed to be the progenitor of this world as well as a sign of its destruction, Tiamat was one of the first demons to have been born on this world after its creation. Much like Mouryou, another one of the first demons to be born on this world after its creation, Tiamat became a rival to the Juubi for dominance over this world, thus creating the age of the Endless War, but was eventually defeated. However, before her defeat, Tiamat spawned many more demons and monsters from her own flesh and blood. Five of her eldest spawn, each one created from a broken horn on each of her five heads, would eventually become the Genryuu, the dragons responsible for creating the Ryuu clan before the First Ninja World War. As for the rest of her spawn, many of them would eventually become the progenitors of powerful animals, including the summon beasts like ourselves."

Shocked, Jiraiya exclaimed, "Wait a damned minute here, you're telling me that you are all the descendants of Tiamat, a rival of the Juubi itself?"

Nodding, the Great Toad Sage explained, "Although our blood ties to her are distant at best, she is without a doubt our ancestor. Already we had received word that the snakes are in a state of terrified panic, fearing retribution from Tiamat for daring to pose a threat to her spawn."

Realizing that the elderly toad was serious, Jiraiya sighed in frustration before he asked, "So if these… Tiamat-Spawns are around now, why haven't we received word about her or her spawn yet?"

"To answer your question, allow me to ask you this. Did a certain new species of monsters appear recently?"

Blinking, something clicked in Jiraiya's mind as he swore, "Holy damn, it's the Akujuu, they're the probably the Tiamat-Spawns!"

"If that is the truth, than it can only mean that Tiamat or her chosen champion is already on the move."

Running his hand though his white hair, Jiraiya asked, "So if these Akujuu are the Tiamat-Spawns, that would mean that the Akukage from Yamigakure is their summoner or something similar, assuming that he is not under the control of Tiamat herself. What I don't get is why even bother trying to live peacefully with the rest of the elemental nations, assuming that the Akujuu are really Tiamat-Spawns. Also, knowing Naruto, he would never be on good terms with someone who wants to destroy or tyrannically conquer the world."

Rubbing his chin, the Great Toad Sage said, "There is one particular legend about Tiamat which might explain it. She was supposedly more interested in a peaceful coexistence between herself and her progeny with other creatures, only becoming a rampaging demon of primordial chaos when her spawn are threatened."

Raising an eyebrow, Jiraiya said, "If what you said is true, that would explain a number of things. Hell, knowing Naruto, I won't be surprised if he somehow appealed to her better nature."

Nodding in agreement, as he did know about Naruto's exploits before his banishment, the Great Toad Sage said, "Indeed, it would be something that Naruto would do. However, be on your guard as the return of Tiamat would mean that dark times are likely to be upon us…"

Flashback End

Jiraiya, who had later informed Tsunade about the possible link between the Akujuu and Tiamat, could only pray that Naruto is alright in spite of his association with the Akukage. Equally concerned for the boy, especially after conversing with her slug summons which confirmed what the toad sage had told her, Tsunade mentally swore, "Brat, you better be alright or I swear I'll punch you so hard that even the Kyuubi no Youko will feel it!"

Scene Change

After riding on an Akujuu-Kujira to get onto the Yami no Sora, the Kages, Daimyos and their escorts were guided to an open chamber with a ring-shaped table in the middle. Among the representatives of the ninja villages present were the five major villages as well as Takigakure and Hoshigakure while the lands represented by the respective Daimyos included the Lands of Vegetables, Birds, Spring and Demons. There was even Tazuna, a bespectacled elderly man who represented the people of Wave. Sitting on a seat which was more like a throne, Kaijin spoke, "I, Uzumaki Kaijin, warmly welcome you all. As you should know, I have called for this meeting to discuss the possibility of a peaceful coexistence between the people of Yamigakure with the people of other nations, especially the ninja villages."

Frowning, Oonoki was begrudgingly impressed by the fact that the Akukage was not only the apparent summoner or master of the dangerous Akujuu but was also somehow in control of a remnant of the Land of Sky. Still, he was considered as a stubborn old man for a reason as he spoke, "And why should we trust you? In case you didn't know, my people and I are well-aware of the destruction of Otogakure and it would not require a genius to conclude that you are one of the more likely suspects of its destruction."

Kaijin was amused rather than offended as he smirked and replied, "And I applaud you and your people for noticing something less than completely obvious." Before Oonoki could angrily protest, Kaijin added, "And before you let your temper make you say anything foolish, please do consider how blind a person would have to be to fail to recognize the difference between a child and the demon imprisoned within him. Granted, emotions can blind a person's ability to see the truth but it goes without saying that being unable to temper one's own emotions with rational thought can turn even the greatest of geniuses into complete fools. It would therefore be a shame if you allow your temper to control you into making the same mistakes as some of the people of Konohagakure had done."

Hearing Kaijin's statement and seeing him glance pointedly at Sasuke and Sakura, Oonoki was placated somewhat as he sat back and said, "While I will not argue against your argument, it still does not answer why you wish to be allied, if not at least on neutral terms, with the rest of the ninja villages, including my own, especially if you were the one responsible for destroying Otogakure which obviously proves that your forces can easily become a credible threat to any one of us."

Nodding in understanding, Kaijin replied, "I understand your concern for the welfare of your village. However, I am sure that Orochimaru's infamy as a malicious madman and a traitorous villain are well-known to everyone in this room. In fact, had any of you known for sure that I and my people are not a threat to your own, I'm sure that none of you would have been so bothered by the possibility of us finally putting an end to his mad schemes for power and immortality."

Hardly one to disagree with Kaijin's assessment, Ei decided to speak his thoughts, "Assuming that you did indeed destroy Orochimaru and his damned village, which is unquestionably doing the Elemental Nations a great favour, I fail to see what is in it for you to do so. Orochimaru is one of the Sannin after all and provoking his wrath is certainly a dangerous move no matter how you look at it."

"Before I answer your query, I will first answer the Tsuchikage's," said Kaijin before he turned his attention to Oonoki and answered, "Yes, my forces and I were indeed directly responsible for destroying Otogakure and killing Orochimaru. However, knowing his desire to live forever, I admit that we cannot discredit the idea of him having backup plans to prevent his own permanent death. Why, I would be far from surprised if he even went so far as to prepare clones of his own body with backup memories or souls to ensure his continued survival." As no one doubted the possibility, none of them said anything as Kaijin turned his attention to Ei and explained, "As for the benefits that I will gain in killing him and removing his village, consider it as a way to both prove the prowess of my forces and as a way to prove my desire for my people to peacefully coexist with your own by removing a common threat. After all, you yourself admitted that killing him was the same as doing the Elemental Nations a great favour."

Ei's frown deepened slightly as he considered Kaijin's words before he asked, "Is that really all there is to it?"

"No, I admit that I have more personal reasons in removing him and his village. But for you to fully understand these personal issues, allow me to first state my ambition to all of you." Turning his attention to the rest of the gathered audience, Kaijin removed the bandages on his right arm to reveal a clawed scaly hand similar to that of an Akujuu. While everyone noted the arm, Kaijin explained, "As you can see, I'm not what you would call a perfectly normal human. Needless to say, my childhood was far from pleasant and there were times when I honestly wished that I could simply hate humanity and destroy them all. However, I came to know of people, including humans, who cared for me for who I am regardless of what I am. When I finally rose to power, I decided that I would create a place where the cursed, the monstrous, and the demonic, can live freely without fear of persecution as long as they are good people. Of course, since I do acknowledge that there are good humans along with the bad, I am willing to extend my hospitality to any human who accepts us as equals, as fellow people capable of not only evil but good as well."

Hearing Kaijin's ambitions, Tsunade spoke, "I can see why you wanted to remove Orochimaru. If he had known your endeavours, he would have tried to have you join him, failing at which he would simply start abducting your people and forcing them to become his lab experiments, assuming that he does not kill you and enslave your people first."

Nodding to Tsunade, Kaijin replied, "Precisely, Hokage-san."

"Then what about the Akastuki?" asked Mei who then continued to speak, "While I understand your issues with Orochimaru, I fail to see why you would send your Akujuu to antagonize an infamous group of S-ranked criminals who are only interested in hunting down Jinchuuriki."

"Well, I do so happen to personally know Uzumaki Naruto, whom I'm sure you all know is the current jinchuuriki of the Kyuubi no Youko. Besides, even if I did not know him in person, I do consider jinchuuriki as fellow beings who are generally persecuted by humans just because they are "less the human". And I have no intention of doing nothing while the Akatsuki hunts them down as though they are mere animals."

Raising an eyebrow at Kaijin's explanation, Mei noticed that Gaara, Tsunade, Shibuki, Koyuki, and Tazuna were not surprised by the revelation. Deciding to sate her curiosity, she asked Tsunade, "And I'm assuming that some of you came here to confirm his claim about knowing Uzumaki Naruto personally, didn't you?"

Glancing at the younger woman, Tsunade replied, "I will not bother denying it. That brat, as you all probably know by now, was the only reason why I returned to the village, and why I even bothered to remain in that village after his banishment."

Knowing full well about the use of hunter-nin to hunt down missing-nin, Mei asked, "And I'm guessing it is more about keeping the hunter-nin in check rather than any attachment to the village itself?"

"Don't get me wrong, there are good people in the village, many of whom I have called here so that they can have a chance to finally greet him after so many years."

Oonoki interrupted Tsunade's conversation with Mei as he spoke, "And yet you brought these worthless excuses of ninjas to this meeting." It did not require much thinking for everyone to know who he was referring to. Sasuke held back a growl of displeasure while Sakura looked away from the stares and glares upon her in shame.

Turning her attention to Oonoki, Tsunade replied, "Yes, I admit that I brought Kakashi, the Uchiha, and the Haruno to this meeting. However, other than Kakashi who is regretful over his past actions, or the lack of it for that matter, Kaijin requested us to bring Naruto's two other teammates as well to this meeting."

Surprised, Oonoki turned his attention to Kaijin who nodded in confirmation and said, "Yes, I did request for her to bring them to this meeting. I even promised that their misbehaviour will not risk my desire to coexist peacefully with Konohagakure, although that would not stop me from maiming them or worse should they decide to do so."

Raising his hand, Gaara asked Kaijin, "Where exactly is Uzumaki Naruto? You promised that he would be here."

Smiling, Kaijin replied, "Patience, Kazekage-san, he will make his appearance eventually. But first, allow me to make my offer of peace to you all." Having everyone's attention, Kaijin proceeded to speak, "As proven by my successful attack on Otogakure, I possess a force worthy of note. However, I have no interest in conquest or mindless destruction. Instead, as I have stated earlier, I only wish for my people to live in peace, to create a place where being different from a normal human does not equate to being inferior or evil. As such, I would like to make it clear that refusing my offer for a peaceful coexistence or an alliance with your people will not necessarily be a declaration of war, unless you decide to attack us first by which time we will retaliate against those responsible with extreme prejudice. Also, you are allowed to make a request for a peaceful coexistence or an alliance with me and my people at a later date should you refuse my offer for now, preferably without needing a war to convince you than I'm more valuable as an ally than as an enemy."

"So in other words, refusing your offer will not necessarily mean that we will become your enemies unless either one of us decides to attack the other first," said Ei.

Turning his attention to Ei, Kaijin confirmed, "Correct. On the other hand, should you choose to coexist peacefully with us or even be allied to us, we will be happy to trade with your people and even offer our… admittedly monstrous services to aid you."

Rubbing his bearded chin thoughtfully, Oonoki then asked, "And the conditions for your offer?"

"The first condition is that you must accept that any attempt to betray my trust will be a declaration of conflict if not war. Of course, for the sake of fairness, this condition can go both ways. The second condition is that I expect you to aid me and my people in our time of need, just as we ourselves are expected to aid you and your people in your time of need. However, I will respect the fact that whatever aid that we can provide to one another will be most likely limited to within good reason. The third condition is that you will not force any of my people to join or re-join your ranks, at least not without our approval. Again, this condition goes both ways and any continued forced attempts without proper justification will be deemed as a betrayal of trust. The final condition is that we all must work together to deal with the Akatsuki as they are obviously planning something with the jinchuuriki they intend to capture, something which is undoubtedly not to our benefit."

Hearing the offered conditions, the leaders discussed with their respective advisors and confidants. Many of them considered accepting the terms of peacefully coexisting or even allying themselves with Yamigakure as they do not seem to be too unreasonable. However, many were also suspicious of the Akukage as Ei spoke, "As tempting as it is, I will not accept your proposal until you offer me something to make it worthwhile."

"Oh, and what exactly do you have in mind?"

"Do you possess any individuals who possess a bloodline limit?" asked Ei.

Realizing the obvious intent, Kaijin replied, "Oh, I do have a number of individuals with unique skills and bloodlines, including the survivors of the bloodline purges in Kirigakure, but do not think for even a moment that I will simply hand any of them over to you. They came to me seeking for a safe place to call home and I intend to honour their wishes."

Seeing that the Akukage will not compromise, Ei crossed his arms over his chest and said, "Then I will decline the offer, at least for now."

Seeing Ei's decision, Oonoki said, "I will decline as well, as I do not trust you or your people. Besides, who is to say that you will not consider humans as inferior to your own kind?"

Hearing Oonoki's words, Kaijin, replied, "I will not bother denying the possibility that there will be fools among my people who will think that humans are inferior. However, as a word of advice, we have no intention of being deemed inferior to humans either, especially considering the evils that humans are capable of."

Next to speak was Mei as she spoke, "As much as I would like to accept your offer, I cannot do so until I have dealt with the problems back at my own home village. There are still those who fear anyone who is different from them and any alliance or peaceful coexistence with you and your people will only provoke them further, especially after what your Akujuu did to any ninja that hunted down those who had a bloodline ability."

Nodding in understanding, Kaijin said, "If you wish, I can offer my warriors and my Akujuu to help you deal with them." He then wore a roguish grin as he added, "Think of it as a way for me to tempt you into accepting my offer."

Smirking, Mei replied in a manner that was almost flirtatious, "Your generous offer is appreciated, Akukage."

Turning his attention to Tsunade and Gaara, Kaijin said, "And for you two, I'm sure that any request that you may have of me can wait until you see Naruto again."

Growing a bit impatient, Tsunade asked, "You could put it that way."

Standing up from his throne-like seat, Kaijin said, "Then let us not delay any further." Unexpectedly, he proceeded to remove his cloak, revealing an upper body mostly covered in bandages and… spiky blond hair?

Those that knew Naruto's blond hair almost had their eyes bulging out as they shared a similar thought, "No way… can it be…?"

Removing his bandages, revealing a lean but muscled upper torso which appeared human except for the scaly parts on his clawed forearms, shoulders, spine, upper back, and over his sternum, Kaijin then removed the bandages over his face. With the bandages over his face removed, Kaijin opened his eyes to reveal cerulean-blue with plus-shaped pupils. His eyes were not the only parts of his face which had changed as they noted his more feral whisker-marks, scaly spikes in place of ears, and his pointed molars as he grinned at them.

Shocked like everyone else, Hinata stuttered, "N-Naruto-kun?"

"Now that this is out of the way, allow me to HUMBLY reintroduce myself…!"

Bowing dramatically, Kaijin reintroduced himself to the gathered leaders and representatives, "I am Uzumaki Kaijin, leader of the Akujuu and Akukage of Yamigakure, former genin of Konohagakure by the name of Uzumaki Naruto, current jinchuuriki of Kurama, the Kyuubi no Youko. I am also known as the Kyuumen no Akuma, Overlord of the Broken Ashes, and Champion of Mother Tiamat!" Both Jiraiya and Tsunade had to keep themselves from physically cringing at the revelation that Kaijin was actually once Naruto who had become Tiamat's champion while he continued to speak, "As for my parentage, let me just say that their names are Namizake Minato and Uzumaki Kushina. Oh, and Jiraiya and Senju Tsunade are both my godparents."

Shocked, as everyone knew the name of the Fourth Hokage, Minato, almost everyone stared at Naruto and realized that he did actually have an uncanny resemblance to him. Noticing Oonoki's eyes upon him, Naruto turned his attention to the elder man and said, "And in case you are wondering, I no longer have any personal allegiance to Konohagakure in spite of my blood ties to the Fourth Hokage. True, there is a possibility that there are people who care for me in that village and that I may end up being allied to their village even if only for their sake. However, should Konohagakure refuse my offer or betray my trust, including harming those from Konohagakure that I care for, I will have no obligation to protect those fools and may in fact deal with them myself."

Seeing no deceit, Oonoki relaxed and wondered if he should have accepted the alliance after all despite the fact that Kaijin is actually the son of Minato. After all, the irony of being allied to the son of Konohagakure's beloved hero who may actually attack his own former home village, justified as it may be, is amusing to say the least.

Recovering from his state of shock, Gaara asked, "Naruto… is that really you?"

Kaijin turned his attention to Gaara and replied with an honest smile, "Indeed I am, Sabaku no Gaara. Admittedly, I did change quite a bit compared to the last time we had met."

"As troublesome as it is to say it, that would be the understatement of the decade," muttered Shikamaru. Hearing Shikamaru's statement, Chouji and Ino both nodded in agreement.

Staring at the person who was once her teammate, who is now a half-monster who no longer has any love for Konohagakure as a whole, Sakura mentally asked, "Dear Kami… Naruto, what have you become…? What did I turn you into…?"

Tazuna, having recovered from his state of shock, swore, "Damn, if I had been drinking at this moment I would have so super-sworn off drinking for life!"

Smirking at the elderly man from Wave, Kaijin drawled, "Right, and I would have sworn off ramen for life."

Raising a brow, Tazuna had to ask, "You didn't happen to drop by at Ichiraku Ramen at Wave, did you?"

Shaking his head, Kaijin regretfully admitted, "Unfortunately, no. As much as I would love to see them and eat their ramen once again, I could not afford to see them until I was sure that I would be able to somehow protect them from the likes of Akatsuki."

Nodding, in understanding, Tazuna then said, "Well, now that it is clear that you can deal with the likes of Orochimaru, do drop by at Wave sometime. Those two, and almost everyone else from Wave including my grandson and my daughter, really miss you."

Kaijin smiled warmly at Tazuna as he spoke, "I will, that is a promise I intend to keep." His smile then became a cheeky smirk as he added, "And be sure to send Inari my regards concerning his crush on a certain girl with scales!"

Not surprised that Kaijin somehow found out about his grandson's crush on a certain girl named Isaribi, Tazuna chucked and replied, "I will."

Before anyone from Konohagakure could speak to him, Kaijin turned his attention to Koyuki, a beautiful young woman with dark hair, and smiled apologetically as he spoke, "Koyuki-hime, I'm sorry that I didn't manage to visit you or even watch you latest movies. Being on the run from the likes of the Akatsuki and forming my own hidden village filled with people unfairly rejected from human society didn't exactly give me a lot of free time."

Shaking her head, the Daimyo of The Land of Spring, once known as the Land of Snow before Team Seven, especially Naruto, somehow changed it for the better, smiled at Kaijin and said, "That's alright. I'm just glad that you have a new dream to achieve, and a noble one at that. Who knows, maybe I can even make a movie about your rise to power to becoming Akukage."

Smiling sadly, Kaijin replied, "I mean no offence but I don't recommend it. If you decide to make a movie about my life after my banishment, you'll most likely end up making a movie about a tragic hero who had fallen and became a villain." Before a surprised Koyuki could ask what he had meant, Kaijin raised his hand and said, "As much as I understand your reluctance to see the whole truth, I am no longer the naïve but well-meaning boy that I once was, and I don't just mean my physical appearance either. True, my desire to help others, my drive to fulfil my promises, and my loyalty to those that I care for had not changed but I also have no interest in striving to be a hero for anyone anymore."

Raising an eyebrow, Oonoki had to ask the son of Namikaze Minato, the Fourth Hokage and Yellow Flash of Konohagakure, "What exactly do you mean by that?"

Turning his attention to Oonoki, Kaijin spoke, "To answer that question, let me ask you, what good is being a hero when you are obligated to "heroically" slaughter hundreds of people, some of whom had to be innocent except that they have the misfortune of being labelled as "villains" by those whom you have sworn to protect, including those that honestly do not deserve protection? What good is being a hero, when the people who had looked up to you as such refuse to honour your dying request to them just because it is "inconvenient" for them?" Hearing Kaijin's own queries, Oonoki and many other people realized that Kaijin was referring to his own father, a beloved hero from Konohagakure. They all could also understand Kaijin's cynical view on being a hero as it did actually made sense from a certain point of view, especially since it was clear that the people of Konhagakure had ultimately betrayed Minato's trust in them to such a terrible degree.

Seeing their comprehension, Kaijin continued to speak, "For most of my life, I had been forced by circumstances beyond my ability to control to live a life of suffering, lies and betrayal. A life in which many of the people from my own former home village hated my very existence just because I had the "good fortune" of being born on the day the Kyuubi no Youko attacked, a life in which I did not even know why almost everyone hated me until the day I finally became a genin by a ridiculous stroke of dumb luck, a life that I honestly believed I could finally be truly happy with when I became a member of Team Seven, a life which ultimately became a cruel joke when I was banished for harming Konohagakure's "precious Uchiha"." Sakura could only look down in shame while Sasuke resisted the urge to scoff at Kaijin as he continued to speak, "I am done forcing myself to wear a mask of a happy fool to make people like me, I am done letting myself live as a farce of a "hero" who is bound by "heroic duties" to help people that will never appreciate me. I will live the rest of my live in freedom, honesty and truth, even if it means living the rest of my life as a hated villain to anyone that does not accept me for who and what I am **NOW**."

Hearing Kaijin's proclamation, which quite blatantly implied that he would sooner be a villain with both honesty and morals than be a "false hero" who will never be appreciated by those he had sworn to protect, Jiraiya sighed in regret as he thought, "Minato, if you're seeing this, I can only imagine what you and your wife are feeling right about now…"

Kakashi could barely repress his regret and seal-loathing as he thought, "So this is the price of my mistakes… forgive me, sensei… Kushina-san…"

Not bothered to hide her sorrowful expression, Tsunade asked, "Do you… regret your choice?"

Shaking his head, Kaijin replied, "Thankfully no, if only because there are people who actually chose to accept me in spite of what I am now. Had they not, I would have been even more messed up than I am now."

Repressing his urge to sigh, Jiraiya asked, "How did you exactly find out about your parentage? It was supposed to be an S-ranked secret to keep you safe from Iwagakure." Mentally, Jiraiya admitted, "Not that it did any good to keep you safe from the people of Konohagakure that hated you…"

"To put a long story short, I met them soon after my banishment, when I was at the brink between life and death. I was… reluctant to believe them let alone forgive them at the time in spite of their proclamations that they loved me and were sorry for what they had done to me." Kaijin sighed in regret as he continued, "I was afraid to be lied to again and… well… you can probably imagine how well that went." Even Oonoki winced at the statement as it took no genius to realize that it went very badly. Hated enemy of Iwagakure or not, to be hated by your own kin whom you yourself love dearly is a terrible experience, to put it mildly.

Seeing the regret in Kaijin's eyes, Tsunade sighed as she asked an important question to change the subject, "Do you really have no more love for Konohagakure anymore?"

Shaking his head, Kaijin replied, "I do care for those that cared for me, or at least not hate me. However, I am at the very least apathetically indifferent to anyone who hates me or wishes to use me as their "loyal weapon". If given a choice between protecting an innocent who comes from Iwagakure and protecting anyone from Konohagakure who hated me, I would choose the former even if it means getting labelled as a vile demon of a villain by my own former home village."

Unable to disagree with Naruto's line of thought, Tsunade then said, "As much as I would love to accept your offer of a peaceful coexistence, the fact that you really are Naruto would cause… complications to say the least." Needless to say, the people who hated Naruto would never support her desired decision.

"I understand, Hokage-san. However, I would like to make a request." His eyes hardened as he spoke, "Do not inform the people of Konohagakure of my parentage." Surprised, everyone was about to ask him when he raised his hand to silence them and spoke to Konohamaru, "Konohamaru, do you still hate the fact that people only see you as the grandson of Sarutobi Hiruzen, Third Hokage of Konohagakure who was once known as the God of Shinobi?"

While surprised, Konohamaru nevertheless nodded in confirmation as he spoke, "Sure it doesn't happen so often anymore, but it still pisses me off a bit."

"Then how would you feel if the people who had hated your for years suddenly treated you nicely or apologized, but only because they realized that the boy that they had hated and mistreated for years turned out to be the son of their beloved late leader, and nothing more?" asked Kaijin.

Realizing what Kaijin was getting at, Konohamaru turned his attention to Tsunade who nodded at him to answer honestly before he answered, "To answer honestly, I would be really pissed at them because not only do they still would not see me for being me, they have the gall to feel bad over hurting the son of a hero instead of feeling bad over hurting an innocent kid."

"My point exactly," replied Kaijin who then turned his attention to the other leaders and said, "I would also like to extend this same request to the rest of you. Granted, I know that I cannot control any of you and forcing your obedience would be too villainous even for my standards." He then wore an unpleasant smile as he added, "Then again, I am admittedly not against the idea of causing discord amongst the people that hated me by spreading "rumours" about my parentage. It would be quite amusing to see their reactions if nothing else." It was obvious to everyone that Kaijin had gained a rather sadistic streak ever since his banishment, not that he actually did anything to hide the fact.

"Do you intend to tell the people of Konohagakure yourself then?" asked Oonoki who was curious about Kaijin's request. Admittedly, Oonoki was actually starting to like Kaijin if only because he was honestly antagonistic against the majority of the people form his own former home village. The fact that he is the son of the Fourth Hokage was the sinfully sweet icing of the metaphorical cake.

Smirking at Oonoki, Kaijin replied, "That largely depends on how the people of Konohagakure react to the news that I am the Akukage. If they plan to wage war against me, I can always use the information against them." Hearing Kaijin's calm and nonchalant statement about using the information of his parentage as though it is a psychological weapon specifically designed to harm the people of Konohagakure, which in truth really would be the case, unnerved many of the people from Konohagakure even further. It was also becoming increasingly clear to them that the boy they once knew was either no more or was so badly hurt by his past experiences that he had become a twisted variation of his former self. Nevertheless, they could not honestly blame him for his apparent antagonism towards his own former home village. If anything, many of them blamed themselves for either driving him to his current state or doing nothing to stop it.

Tears welled in Sakura's eyes as she thought, "This it all my fault…!"

"If only I had the courage to actually be your friend all those years ago…" thought a remorseful Hinata.

"Had I actually helped him as a member of Team Seven the way I should have done…" though Kakashi who closed his eyes as he added another line of thought, "I really am trash…"

"Minato, Kushina, you must be truly ashamed of us all for doing this to your son, me most of all…" though Jiraiya who had blamed himself for neglecting his own godson for as long as he had ever since the boy's unfair banishment and subsequent disappearance. True, he did have his duty to the village as its spymaster and he did provide funding for Naruto's living allowances, not to mention that any close association with a mini-me clone of Minato would quickly provoke suspicions about Naruto's parentage, but none of these reason could change the fact that he did not take care of the boy as much as he should have.

Only Sasuke was completely unsympathetic as he snorted and finally said, "So the Dobe of the village became the leader of a village full of useless rejects. Why am I not surprised to hear this?"

Hearing Sasuke's disrespectful statement, practically everyone with some degree of sympathy or respect for Kaijin was tempted to hurt him. However, Kaijin simply smirked at him and asked, "So says the boy-genius who had his leg broken to almost beyond repair by yours truly." Before Sasuke could argue, Kaijin added, "And before you say anything about me cheating with the use of the Kyuubi no Youko's power, which I could not fully utilize at the time by the way, don't forget that you yourself were using the cursed seal given to you by none other than Orochimaru, the very same man whom I had defeated not too long ago."

Unable to deny Kaijin's claims, Sasuke gritted his teeth in frustration as he growled, "At least I knew that my parents loved me! You're not even sure if anyone in the village loves you, not even your parents!"

While everyone's dislike for Sasuke only grew, Kaijin calmly replied, "True, but at least I did not willingly betray my own home village for revenge or even power. Then again, I highly doubt that someone as obsessed with revenge as you, to the point that I'm quite sure you can't even get so much as a single spark of a sex drive unless it has something to do with revenge, would ever understand true loyalty to anyone or anything other than your personal vengeance."

Hearing Kaijin's none-too-subtle jab at Sasuke's sexuality, many of the people who disliked him snickered openly while Sasuke, not noticing or caring about the insult, simply smirked and argued, "And you're implying that you're better than I am in that regard? Unless I'm mistaken, you're making it very clear that you have no more loyalty to Konohagakure and have no problems of bringing harm upon its people for what they had done to you, which makes you a hypocrite for criticizing me for not having any loyalty and being an avenger."

Waving Sasuke's argument aside as though it was a mere insect, Kaijin replied, "Please, I at least did everything I could to earn my rightful place in the village until those fools who hated me not only decided to banish me for "trying to kill you" but even sent their ROOT to hunt me down like an animal. Besides, I already made it clear that I am no longer the same boy that I once was and I am at least willing to honestly admit that I have gained a cruel and vindictive streak, unlike a self-righteous brat like you who thinks that you are better than everyone and can do whatever the hell it is that you want to do without suffering the consequences."

Increasingly frustrated by Kaijin's calm, and honest, responses, Sasuke was tempted to just strike him down when Kaijin suddenly suggested as though he could read his mind, "If you are so eager to prove me wrong, how about you and I have a duel. If you win, I will admit that you are my better and will even let you kill me. However, if I win, I will take something from you by force. I'll even let you use your cursed seal to defeat me. How does that sound to you?"

Shocked, no one spoke in protest to Kaijin's suggestion while Sasuke wore a vicious smirk and quickly said, "I'm going to enjoy breaking you…!"

Scene Change

Before long, and against the advice of everyone from Konohagakure who hated Sasuke as he was no doubt going aim for the kill, Kaijin soon stood before the Uchiha on the large clearing beneath the Yami no Sora. To Kaijin's near-surprise, even Sakura begged him to reconsider, and not for Sasuke's sake either no less. Granted, Kaijin already knew that Sakura no longer hated him, otherwise she would have gazed at him with scorn and resentment in her eyes, not fear or remorseful regret. Nevertheless, he would not forgive her so easily, nor would he easily forgive Kakashi for that matter.

Facing the blond, Sasuke smirked as he could finally feel the power of the cursed seal coursing through him, making feel stronger as a result. He can already imagine his glorious victory as he crushes Kaijin's body and spirit with his own bare hands, a milestone for him to finally kill his elder brother, Itachi. Seeing Sasuke's near-crazed smirk, Kaijin wore a cruel smirk of his own as he raised his right hand and snapped his fingers.

Suddenly, in a plume of black smoke and burning embers, an Akujuu-Ningen appeared and said, "I, spawn of Mother Tiamat and faithful servant of her chosen champion, will act as referee and judge of this match. This match will be an actual combat situation in which victory will be decided by knockout, admission of defeat, or death. All manner of techniques can be used in this match. If there are no questions or requests for withdrawal, you may begin… NOW!"

As the Akujuu-Ningen quickly stepped out of the way by leaping upwards and letting an Akujuu-Tsubasa carry it away, Sasuke wasted no time to charge at Kaijin with his hands coated in lightning. Not surprised by his attempt at all, Kaijin simply did a familiar handseal and said, "Ash Clones!"

Creating eight clones, Kaijin then sent them towards Sasuke who was confident that he can easily tear his way through them. Well aware of Sasuke's vicious desire to maim or kill Kaijin, the people from Konohagakure feared for the Akukage's life when the clones suddenly changed their appearances. Thanks to his Sharingan, which allows him to see everything in fine detail, memorize whatever he sees, and even predict an opponent's next course of action based on body language, Sasuke was able to barely avoid getting impaled by a scythe. Leaping back, Sasuke stared at the nine clones which were now distinctively different from Kaijin himself in their manner of dress and even their physical appearances. However, they all have the same blue eyes with plus-shaped pupils and whisker-like marks as the original.

The clone who wielded a scythe who wore the clothes of a court jester, grinned in an unnervingly demented manner at Sasuke as he introduced himself, "Greeting, Uchiha! The name's Delusion, Delusion of Insane Hope!" Tall and gaunt, the clone had straight red hair which reached all the way to his hips and could somehow bend his body win ways which should be impossible.

Standing beside the cackling Delusion was a juggernaut dressed in heavy plate armour and wielding a massive spiked hammer. Needless to say, he was the most muscular of the group as he glared coldly at Sasuke and said, "I am Apathy, Apathy of Broken Perseverance." Unlike Delusion who had a narrow angular face as well as an impossibly wide grin with matching wide eyes, Apathy had a squared jawline and high cheekbones as well as harsh narrow eyes, making him look like a cold-hearted soldier with short red hair. Apathy's whisker-like marks did nothing to reduce his cold appearance as they appeared more like deep scars and Sasuke noted that his weight was apparently very real as he left visible footprints with each step he took.

Next to introduce himself was best described as a wild barbarian with unruly long red hair, feral whisker-like marks, and a lean muscular body. Glaring hatefully at Sasuke, the barbarian who wielded a pair of double-bladed axes growled at him, "My name is Wrath, Wrath of Enraged Courage!"

Sauntering towards Sasuke was a clone best described as a variation of Naruto's infamous Sexy no Jutsu. Distinctively feminine in body shape with long blond hair tied into a pair of pigtails, the only thing missing were a pair of large bouncy breasts as the ultimately male clone spoke seductively, "Just call me Lust, Lust of Violated Love." Dressed like a cross between an armoured brawler and a dominatrix, the clone had armoured gauntlets, armoured boots, leather whips, and even a collar.

Stepping forward was yet another clone as he introduced himself in a manner befitting for a wailing phantom as he moaned, "I am Despair, Despair of Awful Wisdom!" Dressed in a grey straightjacket and chains, the person's physical appearance lived up to his given name as his tear-streaked eyes and pale skin could be seen beneath his long spiky blond hair.

"And I am Malice, Malice of Cruel Joy," said a seemingly eloquent voice. The speaker appeared to be some sort of priest as he wore a hooded robe bound in chains. Chained onto his chest was a tome of some sort while spiky blond hair could be seen from beneath his hood. Despite his seemingly harmless cherubic appearance, no one could mistake the malice in his eyes as though he was a servant of the devil himself.

Suddenly, an emotionless voice spoke from behind Sasuke, "I am Loathing, Loathing of Pointless Sacrifice." Shocked, Sasuke turned around to see a figure clade in traditional ninja gear including dark clothes and even a forehead protector which bore the kanji for "Evil". Staring at the clone's impassive face and cold eyes, a face which had an unnerving resemblance to Kaijin's own face except for his short red hair, Sasuke wondered how the hell he had managed to sneak up to an Uchiha as he suddenly disappeared in a plume of red-hot ashes, forcing Sasuke to back away.

"You know, you shouldn't be so distracted by my brothers, mister," said a young boyish voice. Looking down, Sasuke saw what could be best described as a six-year old version of Naruto, except that his eyes were not bright with happiness but instead held an unmistakable gleam of cold malicious cruelty as he introduced himself, "By the way, my name is Corruption, Corruption of Tainted Innocence." As if to prove his point, the still-smiling boy's right hand suddenly changed into a massive demonic claw and tried to crush Sasuke.

Barely avoiding the attack, and more than a little unnerved by Kaijin's new ability which is obviously some sick variation of the Shadow Clone technique and Transformation technique combined, Sasuke was about to push his own discomfort aside and just attack the Dobe and his freaky clones when Kaijin finally spoke, "After my banishment, the mask which I had worn for years to hide my actual feelings of pain, despair, and hatred broke into nine pieces. Ruined by my suffering which I could no longer contain, they had changed into twisted mockeries of their former selves. Eight of the nine pieces became the eight personas which you see before you now. The ninth piece, the very piece which I now personally wear, is known as Void, Void of Shattered Peace!"

As if to emphasize his point, nine masks or some other form of headgear suddenly formed onto the respective hands of Kaijin and his clones before they all put them on. Delusion wore a mask of a mad demented grin with round red eyepieces which appeared to have concentric ripples on them. Apathy on the other hand wore a helmet which hid his face, only having narrow slits for his eyes and three pairs of slits on its "cheeks". As for Wrath, he wore what appeared to be a tribal mask with the painted design of a snarling fox whereas Lust wore an elaborate mask which covered her eyes and cheeks, leaving her mouth and chin exposed. Despair wore a hard leather mask which had openings with vertical bars on both the eyes and the mouth of his mask while Malice wore a bird-like mask which would later be known as a plague-mask. Loathing wore a metal mask which hid his lower face while Corruption wore a ceramic mask not unlike that worn by ANBU which bore the designs of a red fox. Lastly, Kaijin himself, wore the mask of Void which was literally a blank black mask made out of some sort of glass. As Kaijin wore his own mask, a high-collared black trench coat bound with chains and held in place by a leather belt appeared to cover his initially half-naked state. Speaking as one, Kaijin and his eight clone spoke, "We are the Kyuumen no Akuma, we are legion!"

Staring at his former teammates and his new variation of his trademark ninjutsu, Sasuke begrudgingly admitted that his new technique is, if nothing else, intimidating to behold. However, Sasuke was sure that Kaijin was no match to his hatred towards both him and Itachi as Sasuke called upon the power of his cursed seal…

Scene Change

"Dear Kami… is that really Naruto?" asked Ino.

Staring at the person who was once Uzumaki Naruto, Gaara unexpectedly spoke, "It is to be expected, unfortunately." As everyone turned their attention towards him, Gaara explained, "Naruto once told me that he knew the hell of being alone, and after reading the Unmasking of Konohagakure, he was obviously not lying either. The banishment which he had suffered, thereby forever denying him the chance to continue living as a ninja of Konohagakure let alone become the village's Hokage, was obviously his breaking point. If anything, we should be glad that he still has some semblance of sanity and humanity left. Otherwise, he would have been like how I was before he convinced be that there was another way to prove my existence to this world."

"You call that sane?" asked an incredulous Kiba.

"Considering what he had suffer because of his status as a jinchuuriki, and the very real possibility that his own bijuu had been tormenting him from the inside as well, he could have easily became a lot worse," replied Fuu. Like Gaara, she was sympathetic to Naruto and wished she could have met him during his mission at the Land of Waterfalls, wished that she could have told him that she understood his pain.

Hearing Fuu's statement, none of the ninjas from Konohagakure dared to argue against her point as Bee spoke, "That kid is really messed up, good thing his mind is no worse than a cracked-up cup." Ei's adopted younger brother, Bee was a muscular dark-skinned man who had white hair, wears an omnipresent pair of sunglasses, and carries seven short swords. Like Fuu and Gaara, he understood Naruto suffering as a jinchuuriki even though he had not suffered as badly due to Ei's protection.

Hearing Bee's awful attempt at rapping, Yugito smacked her palm onto her face and groaned, "Not the time for your damned rapping, Bee-senpai!" A young woman with long blond hair bound in taught bandages and dark eyes, she, like most people from Komugakure, find Bee's attempts to rap quite frankly awful.

Peering at the two Kumogakure jinchuuriki, Mei said, "No offense meant, but he's obviously more than a little cracked in the head." While she had no personal grudge against Kaijin, she knew that Kaijin was obviously suffering from some sort of mental instability.

"Not to argue that he had never been broken but, like I had said before, he could have easily been a lot worse," said Gaara.

Kakashi meanwhile used his implanted Sharingan to witness the match between Kaijin and Sasuke as he saw how Kaijin use a variation of his Shadow Clones an imbued them with the broken fragments of his "personality mask". Closing both of his eyes, Kakashi felt even greater shame over his past mistakes than before as he resignedly thought, "Naruto will never forgive me, will he…?"

Sakura, sharing the same line of thought as Kakashi, wondered if the boy she once knew, the same silly yet wonderfully caring and brave boy whom she had done nothing but hurt, was truly gone, tormented by every cruelty which he had unwillingly but bravely endured for years until the day he finally broke, cruelty which she had only worsened…

Scene Change

Barely dodging a burning crossbow bolt shot by Loathing, Sasuke gritted his teeth in frustration as he tried to impale Delusion with his sword, a gift from Shimura Danzo. Bending his back and arms into an angle which should not be possible, Delusion somehow redirected his scythe so that it would deflect the sword and miss his body completely. Losing his balance, Sasuke barely managed to regain it in time to leap away and avoid getting crushed by Apathy's hammer. As Apathy moved more swiftly than expected, Sasuke knew that he cannot be careless with him as he doubted even Itachi can withstand getting smashed by the massive weapon.

Suddenly, a whip caught Sasuke's left leg and quickly slammed him into the ground. Quickly glancing at the whip, Sasuke saw that Lust had caught him and that both Malice and Despair would soon bind him with their chains. Not planning to get caught so easily, Sasuke quickly blew a fireball at them and then quickly cut the whip with his sword while they were distracted. However, just as Sasuke managed to cut the whip, he was forced to roll away as Wrath appeared above him and smashed his axes into the ground, trying to cleave him into pieces. Hearing deceptively innocent giggling, Sasuke quickly leapt away as a massive claw erupted from the ground beneath him, trying to grab onto his leg and quite possibly crush it. Feeling incoming danger from behind, Sasuke quickly used his sword to block an incoming attack from Apathy. Knocked back by the blow, Sasuke flew a few feet away before he landed and somehow regained his footing, just barely enough to quickly dodge an attack from a spinning Wrath who was swinging his axes around like a whirlwind.

Despite using the power of the cursed seal which turned him into the same winged humanoid as before at the Valley of The End, as well as his clan's famed Sharingan, Sasuke could not even attempt to attack Kaijin as his clones kept on interfering. As much as Sasuke hated to admit it, Kaijin's new set of clones were incredibly dangerous and would pose a challenge to even the likes of Itachi. Little wonder why Orochimaru was actually defeated by him, assuming that it is even true. Nevertheless, Sasuke smirked as he knew that it he defeated Kaijin, he would soon be more than capable of killing Itachi. In fact, he had recently gained a secret weapon which was originally meant for Itachi, although Kaijin would certainly make an acceptable practice dummy for testing it in an actual combat situation.

Deciding to end the farce, Sasuke activated the most infamous form of the Sharingan, the Mangekyou Sharingan. Looking at Sasuke's changed eyes, Kaijin and his clones frowned as they knew that Sasuke could only have obtained it by killing someone precious to him, assuming that he really did need to feel the loss of a precious person to obtain it. Unlike the normal Sharingan, the Mankegyou Sharingan grants the user additional deadly abilities which the normal Sharingan cannot grant, such as Itachi's Amaterasu. Considering what kind of person Sasuke was the last time they had been together, Kaijin could not honestly say that he was surprised by Sasuke's desire for power, to the point that he would willingly kill a friend. Recalling every bit of information which he was able to somehow obtain about the Sharingan and its so-called evolved form, Kaijin growled, "So, you finally gained the Mankegyou Sharingan, who did you have to kill to obtain these eyes? It certainly wasn't Sakura of Kakashi considering how they are both still alive, and I highly doubt Hokage-san would have allowed you to kill just anyone unpunished."

Recalling the recent death of a certain pale-skinned ROOT ninja known as Sai, by his own hand no less, Sasuke simply snorted and said, "Like it matters, all that matters to me is that these eyes will give me the power to finally avenge my clan by killing that man!"

Staring at Sasuke in near-pity, Kaijin sighed and said, "And I once thought of you as my beloved brother for actually protecting me from Haku all those years ago. You truly are a bastard, and a pitiful fool."

Not expecting Kaijin's response, Sasuke growled in displeasure as he coated himself in lightning and asked, "You dare think of yourself being above me?"

"No, I'm simply stating a simple fact. You did murder someone close to you to obtain those eyes after all, much like how your elder brother slaughtered your entire clan for the sake of testing his own abilities from what I've heard." Indeed, everyone who knew about the Mangekyou Sharingan knew that Sasuke must have murdered someone close to his heart in order to obtain it. The only reason why he was not imprisoned was because Sai was a ROOT ninja who was also deemed as a potential threat to Konohagakure's security as gathered evidence later indicated that Sai was one of Orochimaru's spies. As much as Tsunade hated allowing Sasuke to go unpunished for his obviously selfish crime of murder, she and the rest of the ninja clans could do little to legally punish him. They could not even stop him from testing his new abilities, although they did find it morbidly amusing that the Mangekyou Sharingan was far from perfect as continued usage of its unique abilities will cause the user to go blind eventually.

Hearing Kaijin's reply almost made Sasuke flinch as he, on a deep subconscious level, knew that Kaijin was right. In fact that was probably why Sasuke was able to earn the Mangekyou Sharingan in the first place when he use his Chidori to drive his hand into Sai's chest. Quickly squashing the admittedly fleeting feeling of regret, Sasuke said, "Shut up, you don't know anything about what I had went through because of that man, and because of you!"

Raising an eyebrow at Sasuke's accusation, Kaijin asked, "Me? The worst thing I remembered doing to you was shattering your knee with a Rasengan."

"Exactly, you almost took away my ambition, made me into a laughing stock among everyone who cared or respected you, and forced me to rely on that weakling of a kunoichi for years!" shouted Sasuke.

After a moment of silence, Kaijin sighed as he shook his head and said, "I always thought that you had a narrower mind-set than most, but even I didn't think that you would have such a bad case of "Mental Myopia"." Before Sasuke could argue or attack, Kaijin added, "First of all, it was your own fault for trying to abandon Konohagakure to join Orochimaru, the very same man that killed the Third Hokage. Did you really think that the village would just let you go? As for becoming a laughing stock, again it was your own fault for betraying the village and forcing us to take action to stop you. Had it been another team of ninjas who were given the authority to kill you, you probably wouldn't even be here right now complaining to me. Therefore, blaming me for defeating you is the same as blaming me for doing my job as a loyal former member of the village at the time. Lastly, about your injury, I did promise to bring you back even if it meant breaking your leg. Besides, even I knew that you were planning to shove that damned Chidori of yours into my chest, so don't even think about saying that my attack was disproportionate!"

Hearing Kaijin's arguments, and unable to find any reasonable flaws, Sasuke gritted his teeth in growing frustration and rage before he finally said, "Amaterasu!"

Prepared for the infamous technique, Kaijin and his eight clones avoided the deadly black flames despite the wide area affected by it. As the avoided the attack, Delusion cackled, "Ooh, tempter temper!"

"You missed!" said a giggling Corruption.

Apathy on the other hand spoke in an almost bored manner, "How predictable."

"I wonder if he is as inaccurate with his boy-meat as he is with his eyes," said Lust.

"My, my, such a terrible temper you have there! Was the fact that you lost to us, that we had become so much stronger than before, really that much of a bother to you, oh high and mighty Uchiha-sama?" asked Malice.

Increasingly infuriated by the taunts, Sasuke yelled, "Stop mocking me!" Blinded by rage as well as the strain in his left eye, Sasuke proceeded to attack Kaijin and his clones by breathing fireballs at them. As much as he wanted to use to black flames of Amaterasu to burn Kaijin, Sasuke knew that he cannot risk rendering himself blind before his battle against Itachi. However, it was obvious that Kaijin and his clones were far less cautious of ordinary fire jutsu as compared to Amaterasu as they actually ignored the flames and somehow managed to force Sasuke to defend himself again as they counterattacked.

Cursing under his breath, Sasuke barely avoided getting impaled by Loathing's crossbow bolts, cleaved by Wrath's thrown axe, impaled by Delusion's thrown scythe, ensnared by chains from Despair, Malice and even Lust, as well as crushed by Apathy's thrown hammer. Growing desperate to win, as he saw that the clones could actually create more weapons to throw at him, Sasuke was about to make a second attempt to use Amaterasu when Kaijin suddenly spoke behind him, "It was amusing while it lasted, but it is time to end it!"

Shocked, Sasuke did not even have time to substitute himself with a random object as Kaijin gripped onto his cursed seal, his clawed hands digging into Sasuke's flesh. Gritting his teeth against the painful claws, Sasuke suddenly screamed in pain as he suddenly felt as though Kaijin was ripping his entire shoulder off while filling the flesh and blood with caustic acid. Ignoring Sasuke's screaming, Kaijin literally tore something off Sasuke's shoulder and threw it aside, causing Sasuke to revert back to his human form and pass out.

Turning his attention away to Sasuke, Kaijin smirked cruelly at the distinctively pale and scaly piece of flesh before him as it started to expand and take on a humanoid form…

Scene Change

Shocked by the turn of events, Anko swore, "No fucking way…!"

Equally shocked, Tsunade asked, "Is that…?"

Nodding, Jiraiya answered, "Yeah, it's Oro-teme alright!"

Scene Change

Desperately crawling away from Kaijin, the scrawny naked form which can be considered as a fragment or a weakened copy of Orochimaru was downright pathetic in appearance. Not giving the pale-skinned individual any chances, Kaijin slammed his foot onto Orochimaru's back, breaking his lower spine in the process, followed by kicking him to the side as he spoke, "It is a good thing that I found out about the "special features" of your Cursed Seals. Otherwise I would have to actually put up with your continued existence among the living."

Unable to flee, the small withered form of Orochimaru turned around and fearfully begged, "Please… let me live… I'm sure we can put aside our differences and work together to our mutual benefit! Why… I'll even repent for my past mistakes and let myself be your humble servant!"

Kaijin's smirk only grew as he asked, "Oh, and what can you possibly hope to offer me that would be worth the trouble of keeping you alive?" Picking up Orochimaru by the throat, Kaijin continued to ask, "What can you possibly do to convince me that you're truly willing to repent for your past transgressions and betrayals, knowing that you never cared for anyone other than yourself and your sick ambitions for absolute power and immortality? In fact, the last time I checked, not even the souls of your own dead parents love you anymore, much less willing to give you any chance of redemption!"

Realizing that Kaijin could not be convinced, and reminded of his bitter "family reunion" with the souls of his deceased parents, Orochimaru glared hatefully at Kaijin and growled, "Damn you to hell… you damned monster!"

Smirking in response at Orochimaru's cursing, Kaijin replied, "Please, like I don't already know what I am for everything I had already done, and will probably do in the future." Suddenly, Kaijin's clawed hand ignited into flame, burning Orochimaru who screamed in agony before finally turning into ash. Unclenching his fist, releasing a fistful of smouldering embers, Kaijin added, "Ah, nothing like the tormented and dying screams of the wicked to fill the blackened half of my heart with villainously vile joy! I'll be sure to send you my regards, once the time comes for me to go down to hell myself."

Scene Change

Even Ei was unable to completely hide his shock as Kaijin had just literally torn Orochimaru out of Sasuke's cursed seal, most likely removing the seal as well in the process, and killed the man so casually without mercy or remorse. Considering the kind of boy Kaijin once was, it was quite a shock for everyone who knew him to see Kaijin kill Orochimaru as though he was killing an insignificant insect let alone enjoy burning him to death as Sakura asked, "Dear god… did Naruto just…?"

Nodding, Kakashi grimly confirmed, "He fought against Sasuke as though he was just a mere genin and even removed the Cursed Seal from him, causing Orochimaru to revive in the process, and then killed Orochimaru while enjoying his suffering." Inwardly, Kakashi thought, "And to think that the majority of the older generation from our village was actually stupid enough to see Naruto as a demon before his banishment…!"

Unlike most of the spectators, Anko had other thoughts on her mind as she touched her cursed seal and thought, "Can he do the same for me…?" Noticing his lover, Iruka knew that Anko will try to ask Kaijin to help her finally remove the Cursed Seal, not that he can really blame her. However, he was more concerned about Kaijin's well-being as it was all too clear that Kaijin had become more ruthless and cruel, as well as less mentally stable, after his banishment.

Staring at Kaijin, Konohamaru felt that he could no longer recognize him as he mournfully thought, "Boss… do you even realize that you're becoming what everyone who hated you thought you were?"

Looking at Naruto, Kiba swore, "Damn it… it's going to be hard for us bring him back home, won't it?" Hearing Kiba's rhetorical question, Akamaru could only whine in agreement.

"Hard would not even begin to describe it," muttered Shikamaru as he thought, "Naruto, is this really the only way for you to cope with everything you had endured for all these years?"

"I would agree with Shikamaru, because the Naruto we once knew was nothing like who we are seeing right at this moment," said Shino.

"Is your youthful Will of Fire truly extinguished, Naruto-san?" asked Lee who was visibly saddened by the implications.

"Fate truly had been cruel to you… Uzumaki Naruto…" thought Neji as he solemnly wondered what can be done to somehow help Naruto overcome his cruel fate.

Both Tsunade and Jiraiya wore solemn expressions as it was clear that Kaijin had not only indeed defeated Orochimaru, he actually enjoyed being a villain. Sighing Tsunade asked, "We really messed up with him… didn't we?"

"No… not just us… almost everyone from Konohagakure did," replied Jiraiya.

Well aware that he himself was hardly a saint given his past misdeeds, Gaara thought, "Naruto, no matter what happens, I will help you in whatever way I can as long as you walk on the right path…"

Tazuna, while shocked at how much Kaijin had changed from the boy he once knew, was nevertheless willing to withhold his judgment and give him a chance to reveal his better side as he thought, "Brat, you and your team had saved our country even when most of us had lost hope for any hero to save us. Hell, you even managed to make someone like Zabuza, the infamous Demon of the Mist, admit that he cared for his subordinate, Haku. You better not forget that you're super-better than what those idiots in your former village think of you!" Like Tazuna, Koyuki was more than willing to give Naruto a chance to show his better side.

However, none of them was more saddened by the changes than Hinata as she stared at Kaijin and thought, "Naruto-kun, is this what you really want to be…?"

-Chapter Fin-

Note: This is one long chapter, and I hope it cements the fact that Naruto is darker than canon but not so much that he is beyond sympathy or love. However, even I must admit that it will be a bit difficult to make him well-liked amongst the people who had just seen his capacity for ruthless cruelty, a far cry from the kind-hearted knuckle-head he once was. Nevertheless, Naruto will show his kinder side in later chapters. By the way; Kyuumen no Akuma = Nine-Faced Demon; Akujuu = Evil/Demonic Beast; Yami no Sora = Darkness of the Sky; Akukage = Evil Shadow; Yamigakure = Hidden Village in the Darkness


End file.
